Ugandan killed in South Sudan bus attack, rebels blamed

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A Ugandan has lost their life in an attack on a South Sudan-registered bus on the Juba-Numule highway. 

South Sudan army (South Sudan People's Defence Forces) spokesperson Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang says the attack was a deliberate ambush by a rebel outfit.  

"Based on the information we received from our security forces on the ground, is that one person was killed," Koang said while briefing the media in Juba on September 24, 2024, following the attack. However, the army spokesperson did not provide details about the deceased person's identity. 

The Babeto bus registered as SSD 089 Z was ambushed on its way to Kampala from Juba on September 24, 2024,  at Lakarakak between Nyerjebe and Kubi inside South Sudan.

"Several people were injured including seven civilians and one personnel from National Security Service," Koang said. 

He, however, said that despite conflicting reports on the number of people that have gone missing, "from our source a military source is that seven passengers are missing".

"We have a secondary source, which is indicating that up to 14 are missing and the bus was set ablaze," the army spokesperson said in an audio shared with New Vision Online from a source in Juba.

Rebel group is a regional threat

Koang blamed the attack on National Salvation Front (NAS) rebels whom he said the South Sudan army was pursuing as they headed to Payam in Juba County and "they were heading to an island where we strongly believe that they have a base there".

The army blamed the attackers for choosing a soft target, which was a bus transporting people from different countries.

"The dead is from Uganda, those injured include South Sudanese. So based on that attack, it appears that NAS has become a regional threat," Koang said.

The Babeto bus registered as SSD 089 Z was ambushed on its way to Kampala from Juba on September 24, 2024,  at Lakarakak between Nyerjebe and Kubi inside South Sudan. (Courtesy Photo)

He added: "The challenge is that NAS claims that it is fighting to liberate South Sudanese but as they are liberating them, they are wiping them out". 

"NAS has become enemy number one to the people of South Sudan and to the region. The act committed this morning is unforgivable and the people responsible will be brought to book and they will pay for it," he said.

He, however, could not confirm the exact number of passengers that were on the bus at the time of the attack.

Previous attacks 

There have been several attacks along the Juba-Nimule highway over the years including one that claimed 11 lives in 2022.

On October 8, 2022, at least 11 passengers including Ugandans died and several went missing following an ambush by gunmen on three passenger vehicles along the Nimule-Juba highway. 

The attack is said to have taken place at around 11:00 am at Ame junction when armed men emerged from the bushes and opened fire on three vehicles including a Juba-bound Bonga bus, forcing the driver to lose control and crash into a bush.

A similar attack was reported at the same spot in August 2020 on a Bonga bus two passengers were shot dead, and four children were abducted between the Aru and Jaballen areas.

The South Sudanese army pursued the abductors who later abandoned the children and disappeared.