South Sudan says about 71 killed in Rumbek clashes as exact toll remains unverified

South Sudan’s caretaker government said preliminary security reports put the death toll from clashes in Rumbek, the capital of Lakes State, at about 71 on Friday, October 9. Four soldiers were among those reported killed. The exact number of deaths has not been verified, leaving families and residents without a confirmed account of the toll.

The fighting began at about 4 a.m., according to a ministry statement reported by Radio Tamazuj. The outlet reported that it spread into residential neighbourhoods, forcing civilians to flee. The government later said its security forces controlled the town and urged communities to avoid retaliatory attacks.

What the preliminary Rumbek death toll includes

The Ministry of Information, Communication Technology and Postal Services based its estimate of approximately 71 deaths on initial security reports, Radio Tamazuj said. The ministry said the exact numbers killed and wounded remained unconfirmed. Its statement did not provide a breakdown of civilian deaths, so the reported total cannot be treated as a verified count of civilians killed.

Radio Tamazuj said the four soldiers named in the government’s reported total included a captain and three non-commissioned officers. The ministry did not give a comparable breakdown for civilians. Its promise of further updates as information is verified leaves both the overall toll and the number of civilians killed open.

How the fighting reached residential areas

Witnesses cited by AFP described a group from outside Rumbek trying to take control of the town and briefly succeeding before police and military reinforcements arrived. Two witnesses told AFP the fighting then moved beyond the city limits. Their account describes the course of the fighting but does not establish who the attackers were, what motivated them or how the violence began.

Those accounts also show why the government’s statement that it controlled Rumbek should be read precisely. It reported control of the town and said efforts to restore normalcy were continuing. AFP’s witnesses said fighting had moved outside the town; the available accounts do not establish that violence throughout the surrounding area had ended.

What officials say happened after the clashes

The government said it deployed joint forces from the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces, the National Security Service and the national police, Radio Tamazuj reported. Officials said those forces brought the situation under control. That is the government’s account of its security response, while the reports of residents fleeing and fighting outside town describe the disruption people faced during the day.

According to the ministry statement reported by Radio Tamazuj, four armed civilians were arrested and four firearms recovered. The suspects and weapons were placed in military custody pending further investigation and legal action, the outlet said. The ministry did not identify the suspects or specify whether they were suspected of involvement in particular killings. The available independent reports do not verify the arrests or recoveries separately.

The caretaker government condemned the violence, offered condolences to families of those killed and called on communities in Lakes State to remain calm. It urged restraint and warned against retaliation that could escalate the clashes. Those appeals came while the casualty figures and the circumstances of the fighting were still under investigation.

What remains unconfirmed in Rumbek

The immediate questions are how many people were killed or injured, how many of the dead were civilians, and who took part in the fighting. Neither the government’s preliminary estimate nor the witness accounts reported by AFP answer all of them. Radio Tamazuj said the ministry expected to issue further updates once more information had been verified.

Radio Tamazuj described repeated intercommunal violence in Lakes State, including cattle raiding, revenge killings and disputes between communities. That history provides context for the government’s appeal against retaliation. It does not establish a motive for the people involved in this week’s clashes, whose identities and affiliations remain unconfirmed in the available reporting.