Kiir orders troops to withdraw from streets after ex-spy chief’s gunfire ‘contained’

JUBA – South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has ordered additional armed forces deployed in Juba to withdraw from the streets and return to their barracks after a night of heavy gunfire, linked to a former spy chief, that rattled the capital.

The directive followed an emergency security meeting convened by Kiir at his residence. The talks were attended by top security officials, including Chief of Defense Forces General Santino Deng Wol, the Chief of Military Intelligence, and the Director-General of the Internal Security Bureau.

“The President directed all security agencies to restore the situation to its previous state before yesterday’s clashes,” Tut Gatluak, Kiir’s national security advisor, told the media today. “He made it clear that military presence on the streets of Juba must cease to ensure citizens can move freely and without fear.”

The unrest, which erupted Thursday night in Thongpiny, was linked to an operation to detain former National Security Service chief General Akol Koor Kuc.

Residents reported intense gunfire that left Akol’s residence damaged and ultimately led to his relocation to another home in Jebel.

“The President has emphasized that such incidents must not happen again,” Gatluak said, urging security forces to work together to preserve stability after after the situation is “now under control and contained, and there is no significant security threat in Juba.”

Images circulating on social media showed the aftermath of the fighting, with Akol’s Thongpiny property appearing abandoned and damaged.

Bystanders were seen inspecting the site, a stark reminder of the scale of the violence in one of Juba’s wealthiest neighborhoods.

The clashes have sparked fears of a return to violence in the capital, evoking memories of the December 2013 and July 2016 conflicts that plunged South Sudan into civil war. Officials, however, sought to reassure the public that normalcy had been restored.

Akol, accompanied by his wife and five bodyguards, was relocated without further incident. His safe transfer, coupled with Kiir’s order to withdraw troops, has been interpreted as a bid to de-escalate tensions in the city.