SPLA-IO division 9 commander’s residence in Yambio attacked, bodyguard wounded

JUBA – A militia group in Western Equatoria State has allegedly attacked the residence of SPLA-IO division 9B commander Maj. Gen. Simon Alisolomo in Yambio town wounding one of his bodyguards, a local government official said this morning.

The attack by a group calling itself People Defenders’ Front (PDF), the local administration official said, took place during the early hours of Thursday, October 13, 2022, just before a similar attack in which the militia group attacked and wounded a boda-boda rider.

“Yesterday morning, there is this militia group which is called People’s Defenders’ Front (PDF), they are now creating instability inside Yambio town. They attacked the resident of General Simon Alisolomo who is the commander of division 9 of SPLA-IO under Riek Machar,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

“They clashed with the bodyguards of the general and they were defeated, but no one was arrested on their site and one person from the bodyguards of the commander has been wounded and is in a very critical situation. At 8:00AM, they attacked a boda-boda rider and wounded him,” he added.

Another resident told Sudans Post separately that PDF is believed to have been formed by deputy governor Kennedy Ganiko who announced his withdrawal from the state transitional government last weekend in which he cited ‘incompetent’ leadership of Governor Alfred Futuyo.

Over the weekend, Ganiko who is the chairperson of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Government (SPLM-IG) announced, alongside other members of his group, his withdrawal from the state transitional government citing ‘incompetent leadership’ of Governor Alfred Futuyo.

The resident who also refused to be identified for fears of reprisal said gunmen allegedly acting on orders of the deputy governor have created fears among the civil population as attacks on innocent civilians have escalated since.

“As I am talking to you, there is a group of armed people and they are belonging to the deputy governor Kennedy Ganiko. This people are armed and they call themselves Peace Defenders’ Front (PDF) and Community Patriotic Front (CPF). They have started carrying out attacks against civilians who have no political activities,” the official said.