Kuol Madang Kuol, the rebel-appointed 'governor' of Northern Bahr al Ghazal has claimed that their forces captured an SPLA garrison in Aweil West County on Sunday morning.

He claimed that the victory came after fighting the government forces in the area. He pointed to heavy losses during the clashes, but he didn’t give further details. Separately, the Aweil East County Commissioner Garang Kuac dismissed the rebel claims that they captured Achana administrative unit.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj yesterday, Garang described the armed opposition as “thieves” who wanted to destabilize citizens' security in the state.

The latest fighting comes after earlier claims by South Sudanese rebels loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar that they captured Achana administrative unit in Aweil West County, about 40 kilometres away from the Northern Bahr al Ghazal capital Aweil.

Deng Deng, SPLA-IO commander in the area, said that they had attacked the area and captured military equipment.