In a statement extended to Sudans Post, Gatwech’s family indicated that their father who was 87, died ‘peacefully’ following a brief illness.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved father, Major General George Kel Gatwech,” the family statement reads in part. “He passed away peacefully on November 15, 2023, at the age of 87, after a brief illness.”
Hailing from Mayendit County in Unity State, Gatwech played a pivotal role in South Sudan’s fight for independence from Sudan. Initially part of the Anyanya I and Anyanya II movements, he was absorbed into the Sudanese army after the Addis Ababa Peace Agreement in 1972.
He was deployed to Bor, Jonglei State as part of the Sudanese army soldiers when he and Kerbino Kuanyin Bol started a mutiny on May 16, 1983, marking the establishment of what would become the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/SPLA).
During the second north-south Sudan civil war, Gatwech served as a prominent general within the new rebel group.
Following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005, he rose to become a senior general within the South Sudan army, the SPLA.
After South Sudan’s independence from Sudan in 2011, Gatwech briefly left the military to become a member of South Sudan parliament for Mayendit.
He would quickly return to the military following outbreak of the country’s civil war in December 2013 and became a prominent advisor of rebel leader and now First Vice President Riek Machar in the SPLM/A-IO.
One of Gatwech’s prominent children, Camilo Gatmai, became an aide to Machar post the first peace agreement in 2015.
During the resurgence of war in July 2016, Gatmai accompanied Machar during his 40-day flight to the Democratic Republic of Congo and subsequent two-year detention in South Africa.
Speaking to Sudans Post today, Gatmai revealed that preparations were underway to transport Gatwech’s remains to his hometown of Rubkuai in Mayendit County for burial, slated for Saturday if arrangements proceed as planned.
In their statement, Gatwech’s family remembered him as a “beloved father” and a “loyal and loving companion” whose presence illuminated their lives.
They expressed profound sorrow for the loss, stating that he would be deeply missed by everyone who knew and cherished him.