South Sudan’s Peacebuilding Minister, Stephen Par Kuol, has been arrested by national security forces, according to a spokesperson for Vice President Riek Machar. The arrest, which took place at Kuol’s office on Thursday, marks another setback to the country’s fragile peace process.
“The National Security Service (NSS) has struck again, arresting Hon. Stephen Par Kuol, Minister of Peacebuilding, from his office just moments ago,” said Machar’s spokesperson, Puok Both Baluang, on the social media platform X.
The arrests come after recent clashes in the northern town of Nasir between national forces and the White Army militia, a group mainly composed of Nuer fighters, Machar’s ethnic group. The White Army had fought alongside Machar’s forces during the 2013-2018 civil war against President Salva Kiir’s predominantly ethnic Dinka troops.
South Sudan’s Information Minister Michael Makuei accused Machar’s forces of working with the White Army to attack a military garrison near Nasir earlier this week. Makuei has not commented on Kuol’s arrest, though Kuol was involved in the peace negotiations that led to the 2018 peace agreement.
This arrest follows the earlier detention of Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chol, who is from Nasir, and Deputy Army Chief Gabriel Doup Lam, along with other senior military officials aligned with Machar.
