South Sudan on brink of civil war after Vice President is arrested | DW News

South Sudan on brink of civil war after Vice President is arrested

The peace deal that ended South Sudan’s five-year civil war in 2018 has effectively collapsed after the arrest of the country’s Vice President. Riek Machar was detained alongside his wife and placed under house arrest. His detention has stoked fears of reigniting the civil war – a conflict fought between forces loyal to him and his rival, South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir. 400,000 people lost their lives in that conflict. Clashes have escalated between the two sides in the northeastern Upper Nile state in recent months — displacing at least 50,000 people. The US has urged South Sudan to release Machar.

Credit DW News