Police in South Sudan have declared a nighttime curfew the morning after an anti-Sudanese demonstration in the capital, Juba, degenerated into looting.
Police Chief, Abraham Manyuat announced the curfew today on state television as new protests began in the capital and other cities.
Heavy gunfire erupted, and security forces were deployed in South Sudan’s capital Thursday to stop angry youths from looting businesses owned by Sudanese nationals.
Reports indicated that Sudanese-owned businesses in neighbourhoods across Juba had been vandalised and looted amid rising tensions.
The unrest follows protests by local residents condemning the alleged killing of South Sudanese nationals in Sudan by the Sudanese Armed Forces.
Colonel John Kassara Koang Nhial, spokesperson for the South Sudan National Police Service, confirmed to newsmen that police were dispersing a group of South Sudanese who were protesting against the killing of South Sudanese in Wad Madani, El Gezira State’s capital, by the SAF.
He said Sudanese people living in South Sudan will be protected at all costs, and their properties and shops should not be looted.
Early this week, gruesome videos circulating on social media of South Sudanese killed in Wad Madani, the capital of Al Jazirah State, raised concern about the safety of thousands who have been stranded in the war-torn neighbouring country.
