5 dead in clashes between Uganda, S Sudan
JUBA
At least five South Sudan security forces were killed in clashes with the Ugandan army near the countries' shared border earlier this week, local officials said yesterday.
Uganda has a history of involvement in impoverished South Sudan, and has long provided military support to President Salva Kiir, including a deployment of special forces since March.
It was not clear what triggered the clashes on July 28 between the Ugandan People's Defense Forces (UPDF) and government troops in Central Equatoria State that were confirmed by South Sudanese People's Defense Force (SSPDF).
Police in Kajo Keji county, where the clashes took place, said "two SSPDF officers, two prison officers and a police officer" were killed, according to a statement from local authorities yesterday.
The statement quoted local army commander Henry Buri as saying the Ugandan forces "were heavily armed with tanks and artilleries," and had targeted 19 "joint operation" forces.
Uganda sent troops to support Kiir when civil war broke out in the country in 2013, just two years after it gained independence from Sudan.
The civil war between Kiir and his long-time rival, Riek Machar, lasted five years and left some 400,000 dead before a power-sharing agreement was reached in 2018.
