The commissioner of Melut County in South Sudan’s Upper Nile state denied there were clashes between government forces and defected troops in the oil producing area of Adar Yeil on Monday.

Commissioner Dau Goch Ayuel told Radio Tamazuj that the security situation is calm.

However, Goch said he received information that Riek Machar’s rebels were moving from Maban County toward Adar Yeil oilfield.

He said government forces at the oil field were ready to repel any attack by the rebels.

Goch accused the rebels of carrying out an attack between Bunj and Addar Yeil area in Maban County. 

He said the rebel forces took three tractors and another piece of machinery from the Dar Petroleum Operating Company (DPOC), but did not have further details due to network outages in Maban County.

IDPs in Bunj

About 24,000 internally displaced people from Baliet, Pigi, and Malakal live in Bunj.

Goch said health conditions of the IDPs are relatively stable after aid agencies provided humanitarian assistance.

Adar Yeil is southeast of Melut.

File photo: Wastewater pools outside Petrodar oil facility in Paloich, South Sudan (AP)

For breaking news updates from Radio Tamazuj ‘like’ our page on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, or subscribe to our RSS feed.