NUF deployment to Sudan border sparks tensions between SSPDF and SPLA-IO  

BENTIU – South Sudan’s deployment of unified forces to the border with Sudan has triggered accusations of a unilateral move by the government, angering the main opposition group, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO).

In April, information gathered by Sudans Post from both opposition and government sources indicated the movement of some 4,000 Necessary Unified Forces (NUF) – troops who graduated from a training center in southern Unity State – to a base in Rubkona.

Last week, a source with the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) 4^th infantry division in Rubkona confirmed the NUF’s deployment to a former SPLA-IO base north of Bentiu, near the Sudanese border.

SSPDF 4^th infantry division commander Maj. Gen. Manyang Mayak defended the deployment, citing security concerns arising from the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

“The Joint Defense Board agreed to deploy these forces along the border due to the threats the country faces,” Mayak told Sudans Post on Sunday. “We deployed them with the agreement of all stakeholders involved in the process, but some of them are not yet equipped with weapons.”

However, SPLA-IO Sector Two commander Maj. Gen. John Turuk Khor vehemently denied any prior consultation.

He called the deployment “unilateral” and accused Governor Joseph Nguen Manytuil of acting without informing the SPLA-IO leadership in Juba or Bentiu.

“We learned with regret that the SSPDF commander in Bentiu and the governor have deployed the forces who were brought from Muom training center without any prior information to the other signatories of the revitalized peace agreement, especially the SPLM-IO. They have deployed them to the border of Sudan,” Khor said.

Khor went on to accuse the government of violating the peace agreement by neglecting SPLA-IO soldiers’ salaries.

“Their colleagues from the SSPDF are receiving their salaries, while the SPLA-IO forces are not,” Khor said. “This is unacceptable and violates the agreement. They are suffering and facing starvation, while their counterparts have food.”

The deployment and alleged pay disparity raise concerns about the fragility of the peace process, threatening to escalate tensions between the government and the SPLA-IO.