A local official said three civilians have been abducted in Mundri East County of Western Equatoria State on Sunday. Benjamin Commander Dayos, the Secretary General of the defunct Amadi State, told Radio Tamazuj that those abducted by armed men in Karika payam were in the bush to collect wild fruits. He said the group freed an elderly man they had also abducted. Benjamin has accused the opposition National Salvation Front (NAS) of abducting the civilians. The local official urged the holdout opposition group to respect the truce agreement signed with the government in Rome in January. For his part, NAS spokesman Suba Samuel Manase denied accusations that NAS forces harassed, abducted or looted properties in Mundri East. The hold-out opposition group, which is not a party to the revitalized peace agreement, said it is committed to the cessation of hostilities agreement signed in 2017, but reserves the right to self-defense. Last week, the members of the 'Troika' – Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States – expressed concern over the impact of insecurity on humanitarian access in many parts of South Sudan.
