A human rights group says it has uncovered evidence that South Sudanese government forces deliberately suffocated more than 60 men and boys in a shipping container.
Witnesses interviewed by Amnesty International reported that government soldiers arbitrarily arrested dozens of men and boys in the villages of Luale and Leer in October of last year. They then forced them into unventilated shipping containers with their hands tied behind their backs, according to a report released by Amnesty International.
Witnesses also told researchers they heard the detainees crying, screaming in distress and banging on the walls of the container while officials watched.
The organization interviewed more than 40 people, one of whom said she watched soldiers open the container to remove four bodies, and then close it again on those who remained inside alive.
By the following morning all but one of the group had died, according to the report.
“Dozens of people suffered a slow and agonizing death at the hands of government forces that should have been protecting them,” said Lama Fakih, Amnesty International senior crisis adviser, in a statement. “These unlawful killings must be investigated and all those responsible brought to justice.”
The bodies were then loaded on to a truck and dumped in an open field in Leer Town, according to Amnesty International, which says its researchers found human remains at the site.
Witnesses said that the men rounded up were students, traders and cattle keepers rather than fighters.
‘This heinous crime’
The South Sudanese government denies the accusations leveled against it.
“We have been informed of the report and take anything like this very seriously,” Ateny Wek, spokesperson for the Republic of South Sudan, told CNN. “We make every effort to investigate accusations aimed at our forces.”
“However, our forces did not commit any human rights violations. There are a number of bandits and lone militia forces that are active in that area,” Wek said. “Our forces do not kill civilians. Occasionally there may be accidental deaths as a result of crossfire, but the South Sudanese army is not responsible for this heinous crime. We intend to investigate who is responsible and bring them to justice.”
A bloody history
After decades of war, South Sudan seceded from Sudan in 2011. But in 2013 President Salva Kiir accused his fired deputy, Riek Machar, of trying to oust him in a coup, and the world’s youngest nation became embroiled in a violent conflict.
The country divided along tribal lines — the Nuer community backed rebel leader Machar, while the President is from the Dinka tribe.
Since then, militias loyal to both men have battled against each other in a bitter and bloody civil war that has cost thousands of lives and displaced millions.
Stories of cannibalism, gang rapes and forced child soldiers were widely circulated last year when the African Union released a report on human rights violations perpetrated by all sides as a result of the conflict.
Under threat of U.N. sanctions, both parties signed a peace deal in August 2015, however, fighting has continued across the country, albeit at a lower level.