South Sudan’s vice president takes forces out of Juba, not preparing for war, says spokesman

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The events mirror those of December 2013, when a two-year civil war began after Machar, sacked from his post as Kiir’s deputy, withdrew his forces from Juba and launched a full-scale insurgency.

“We had to move away from our base (in Juba) to avoid further confrontation,” Machar’s spokesman James Gatdet Dak in Nairobi told Reuters, saying he was in contact with Machar’s forces. “He is around the capital. I cannot say the location.”

It was not clear what caused the latest rift between the two men who have long jostled for power, even before South Sudan’s independence from Sudan in 2011. The flare-up was apparently sparked on Thursday when Kiir’s forces stopped and demanded to search vehicles with Machar’s troops.

Gatdet Dak said Machar would stay away from Juba until ceasefire details were worked out.

“He is not returning to the bush, nor is he organising for war,” the spokesman said, calling for an outside force to be deployed to act as a “buffer” between Machar and Kiir’s forces.

Other demands from Machar’s side are to implement a joint command, an integrated armed force and a joint police force securing Juba, all issues laid out in a peace deal but not yet implemented, said Gatdet Dak.

Kiir and Machar signed the peace deal in August 2015, but spent months arguing over details. Machar returned to Juba in April and was reinstated as Kiir’s deputy, a move that was meant to help cement the process.

Regional African states have suggested sending in forces to beef up the U.N. mission UNMISS with a tougher mandate to enforce peace, instead of a narrow focus to protect civilians.

Gatdet Dak said Kiir’s helicopter gunships had pursued Machar’s forces and attacked Machar’s residence in his compound in Juba on Tuesday, although he said Machar had left Juba by that time.

The president’s spokesman and other officials in Kiir’s SPLA army could not immediately be reached for comment. They previously said they were committed to upholding the ceasefire, implementing the peace agreement and working with Machar.