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| Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers take a rest outside the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) base in Malakal on March 20, 2014 (AFP Photo/Ivan Lieman) |
"The violations of the Agreement
to Resolve the Crisis in South Sudan shows that ( #PresidentSalva) #Kiir
is either insincere or not in control of his forces," rebel military
spokesman Lul Ruai Koang said in a statement.
Koang
alleged the violations occurred in the oil-rich northern states of
Upper Nile and Unity, and included both ground attacks and artillery
barrages. He added that rebels reserved "the right to fight in
self-defence".
Clashes were
also reported around the northern oil hub of Bentiu -- which has changed
hands several times in recent weeks and has been described as being
particularly tense.
In the
capital #Juba, however, the government said their forces had been given
strict orders to its troops to respect the peace deal.
"The orders have been given to the army to start observing arrangements for the cessation of hostilities," #PresidentKiir's spokesman, Ateny Wek, told AFP.
He said the
government had received no word from the rebels, but added that
government army commanders "have sent any reports of violations" by
forces loyal to rebel leader and former vice-president Riek Machar. Kiir
and Machar met in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Friday and
agreed halt fighting within 24 hours -- or by Saturday evening.
The
agreement came after massive international pressure on both sides to
stop a five-month conflict marked by widespread human rights abuses, a
major humanitarian crisis and fears the world's youngest nation was on
the brink of a genocide and Africa's worst famine since the 1980's.
The
war has claimed thousands -- and possibly tens of thousands -- of
lives, with more than 1.2 million people forced to flee their homes. Kiir and Machar had agreed to a ceasefire in January, but that deal quickly fell apart.
Source: Yahoo News
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