At least 45 people died in fighting between ethnic groups in South Sudan’s northern state of Western Lakes, a local official said, in a new source of violence in a country already devastated by a four-year civil war.
Shadrack Bol Maachok, the state’s information minister, said the clashes in Malek county started after a group of young people from the Ruop ethnic group attacked rival youth from the Pakam tribe on Wednesday and Thursday.
Early on Friday, the Pakam fighters launched a revenge assault on the Ruop, with the fighting still raging late into the day.
“It was a very heavy fighting, it has left more than 45 people dead and many injured,” he said.
The death toll is likely to climb as the area is remote and officials are still trying to gather information on the incident, he said.
In the clashes, houses were burned down and properties destroyed, Maachok said, adding that South Sudan’s military, SPLA, had deployed troops from the state capital Rumbek to try to stop the violence.
