![South Sudan FVP Dr. Riek Machar Teny speaking to reporters in Khartoum in 2015 [Photo via the BBC]](https://i0.wp.com/www.sudanspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/87074876_ssudan_machar_g.webp?resize=976%2C549&quality=80&ssl=1)
Clashes erupted in mid-February between the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces and armed civilian groups in the country’s Nasir County.
Tensions escalated after the government announced plans to deploy new forces to Nasir County to rotate troops stationed in the area for several years.
The SSPDF commander, Major General Majur Dak, and 30 of his soldiers were killed during a United Nations evacuation operation in Nasir.
Addressing journalists at a press conference held in a military headquarters in Bilpam on Monday, an Army spokesman claimed the SPLA-IO was actively involved in the battle and demanded that Machar be held accountable for the killings in Nasir County.
“So it is very important for you to come out clearly that SPLA-IO was directly involved and should be held accountable for lives lost in Nasir or elsewhere, and the international community should hold Dr. Riek accountable. He is the chairman and commander-in-chief,” Koang said.
He claimed that Machar’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) is linked to the White Army militia.
He alleged the White Army attack on their barrack in Nasir was led by late Colonel Tor Gille Thon, the commander of SPLA-IO.
“Colonel Tor Gille Thon, until the day he was killed in Nasir, was an SPLA-IO officer. In 2019, he was a lieutenant colonel. He was selected by SPLA-IO to go and attend training of the instructors for the Nasser unified forces in Malakal.”
According to Koang, the late Colonel Tor Gille Thon was visibly spotted in military uniform speaking to members of the white army and giving them explicit orders prior to being attacked by the white army under his command.
He said the late Col. Tor Gille made a commitment to seize Nasir at all costs.
“So the question is, this man was not a white army personnel. He was an officer from SPLA-IO who was allowed to command the white army in the fight for control of Nasir. So SPLA-IO is directly implicated,” he said.
He accused Gen. Gabriel Duop Lam, the chief of staff for SPLA-IO, of failing to prevent their officer from organizing, mobilizing, and commanding the white army to attack their base.
“Even he was talking about logistics that he had mobilized. Combat service support logistics in terms of food, rations, and ammunition. There are videos that are circulating on social media regarding all the operational plans they had put in place.”
He claimed that the SPLA-IO were directly involved in the fighting in Nasir County.
“So it is very important for you to come out clearly that SPLA-IO was directly involved and should be held accountable for lives lost in Nasir or elsewhere, and the international community should hold Dr. Riek accountable. He is the chairman and commander-in-chief.”
