Ex-minister urges Kiir to sever ties with Sudan over Al Jazira killings

JUBA – South Sudan’s former minister of health, Dr. Riek Gai Kok, has urged President Salva Kiir Mayardit to sever diplomatic ties with Sudan following the circulation of graphic videos showing the killing of South Sudanese nationals after the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) recaptured Wad Madani from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Videos widely shared online this week appeared to show SAF soldiers and allied militias executing civilians through gunfire and slaughter in various parts of Al Jazira State. The violence erupted after the SAF regained control of Wad Madani, the state capital, from the RSF, which had held the city since December 2023.

Among the victims were South Sudanese nationals reportedly killed in farmlands east and west of Wad Madani by militias from the Popular Resistance and the Sudan Shield Forces. These groups are led by former RSF commander Abu Aqla Keikel, who is now aligned with the SAF in the ongoing conflict.

The disturbing footage sparked outrage across South Sudan, triggering protests in Juba, Bor, Wau, and Malakal. Demonstrators targeted Sudanese-owned businesses and nationals. In Juba, clashes between protesters and security forces left three people dead and seven others injured, according to police.

Additionally, three houses belonging to Sudanese nationals were set ablaze in Aweil, Northern Bahr el Ghazal State, where mobs vandalized properties owned by Sudanese citizens.

Riek Gai Kok, a former member of Sudan’s National Congress Party and a senior official under former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, condemned the Sudanese government for failing to protect South Sudanese citizens. In a statement, he urged President Kiir to take decisive action.

“I strongly believe that he (Taban) was absolutely correct in his overall assessment. One of our problems in this country is the fact that we are allergic to the truth, contrary to what the Holy Bible teaches us: ‘Tell the truth, and the truth shall set us free,’” Riek stated.

He emphasized the absence of a functioning government in Port Sudan, accusing General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s administration of failing to safeguard South Sudanese nationals.

“The inhumane killing of our innocent people in Wad Madani and elsewhere in Sudan highlights beyond any doubt the inability of General Burhan’s illegitimate government in Port Sudan to protect our people, as we do here for hundreds of thousands of Sudanese nationals living in our country,” he said.

Riek called on the government to immediately sever diplomatic relations with Sudan and expel the Sudanese ambassador from Juba.

“As citizens of this country, we are calling on our government to act decisively. South Sudan must cut ties with Port Sudan and demand the departure of their ambassador within 72 hours. Our ambassador in Port Sudan should also be recalled,” he urged.

He further advocated for halting crude oil exports to Sudan and called on China to assist in constructing mobile oil refineries.

“Implement a total shutdown of crude oil exports to Port Sudan and ask China to construct mobile refineries. Our government and its international oil partners must prioritize the construction of a new pipeline. Failure to do so should result in contract cancellations and audits of environmental damage and possible oil theft. We must invite American oil companies to invest in our oil industry,” he asserted.

Riek also stressed the importance of diversifying South Sudan’s economy beyond oil.

“Let’s urgently develop other economic sectors such as agriculture and mining. Oil has become a curse for our country. We must halt its production. Kenya, Ethiopia, and Uganda are developing without oil. Oil money has negatively reshaped our characters,” he said.

He warned against South Sudan maintaining neutrality in Sudan’s conflict, insisting that the government must take a firm stance.

“We cannot maintain strict neutrality in this war,” Riek concluded.