5 including 3 children wounded in northern Unity State cattle raid

BENTIU – Five people were wounded and nearly 5,000 cattle stolen in a weekend attack by armed youth from Ruweng Administrative Area (RAA) on cattle camps belonging to the Leek community in northern Unity State, a local youth leader said.

Gatkuoth Liep Guol, chairman of the Leek Council of Graduates, told Sudans Post on Tuesday the attack occurred on Saturday evening when hundreds of armed youths from neighboring Parieng raided Payangai, a border area near the Sudan-South Sudan border.

“This is to inform you of the attack that happened on Saturday.  youth came in large trucks with heavy weapons and attacked cattle camps of civilians in Rubkona County. The exact location of the incident is Payangai,” he said.

“These youth came from different counties within Ruweng. We blame SSPDF Colonel Ngor for assisting them by allowing them to bypass security checkpoints from deep inside Ruweng all the way to Payangai,” he added.

Guol’s statement raised concerns about potential involvement of senior officials, with attackers reportedly arriving in seven SSPDF pickup trucks and one Ural-4320 truck.

“We were surprised and concerned about possible involvement from the SSPDF and senior government officials in Parieng. They used heavy machine guns in the attack, and these shouldn’t be in the hands of civilians,” he said.

The attack wounded five, including three children, one woman and one man, who were treated at Bentiu State Hospital. They reported being shot while preparing for bed.

“When the attack happened, we thought it was rebels from Sudan. We didn’t know it would be armed youth from Parieng County or Ruweng. The weapons used are advanced and shouldn’t be used by civilians,” the wounded man told Sudans Post.

“They came in seven Land Cruisers and one Ural truck. We were taken to the hospital in Unity but then brought here (Bentiu State Hospital) because the hospital there is small,” the wounded man, speaking on condition of anonymity, added.

The Leek community resides in Rubkona County, which includes Unity State’s capital, Bentiu. Payangai, as known by the Leek community, is 54 km north of Rubkona county headquarters.

The Leek community of Rubkona County refers to the area as Payangai, which Payangai lies 54 km north of the county headquarters, Rubkona.

Historically, Payangai belonged to the Bentiu district of Upper Nile province, established by British colonial rulers. However, following the 2015 creation of 28 states in South Sudan, the Dinka community of Parieng (formerly part of Unity State) claimed ownership and renamed it Pan Akuac.

Ruweng Administrative Area, established in 2015 by President Kiir as part of the state partition, includes Parieng and Abiemnom counties. Parieng lies northeast of Unity State, while Abiemnom is to the northwest.

Previously lacking defined borders, Ruweng authorities have reportedly sought to incorporate parts of Rubkona County, particularly Payangai (west of Parieng and East of Abiemnom), to create a land corridor between Parieng and Abiemnom counties.