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From VOA Learning English, |
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this is In the News. |
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The government of South Sudan |
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has told its soldiers |
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to stop fighting government opponents. |
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The move is part of an effort to end violence |
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that began after a dispute |
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between the country's president |
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and former vice-president. |
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The government's announcement |
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came after leaders of other countries |
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in the area met to urge the two sides |
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to stop the violence. |
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A spokesman for South Sudan's Foreign Ministry |
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told VOA on Friday |
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that the government's cease-fire |
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will begin immediately. |
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It gave the government's opponents three days |
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to answer the call for a cease-fire. |
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Violence began in the capital Juba |
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on December 15th |
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and quickly spread across the country |
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after a dispute between President Salva Kiir |
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and former vice president Riek Machar -- |
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his main political competitor. |
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In July, Mr. Kiir dismissed his cabinet, |
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including Mr. Machar. |
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Tensions had been rising since then, |
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but fighting began |
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only when Mr. Kiir accused Mr. Machar |
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of planning to overthrow the government. |
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Mr. Machar denied the claim. |
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The fighting surprised many observers. |
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From the time South Sudan became an independent country in 2011, |
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many feared that the new country |
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would be at war with Sudan, |
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the country from which it won independence. |
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Instead, South Sudan is at war with itself. |
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The fighting has divided the military in some areas, |
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and has increased ethnic tensions. |
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Some members of President Kiir's Dinka ethnic group |
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have been fighting with Mr. Machar's ethnic group -- the Nuer. |
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The foreign ministry said |
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government soldiers have taken control of Malakal |
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-- the capital of Upper Nile state |
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-- after days of fierce battles. |
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Leaders of East African countries meeting in Nairobi on Friday |
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welcomed the South Sudanese government's decision to end the fighting. |
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They called on Mr. Machar and others to do the same. |
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Both Mr. Machar and Mr. Kiir have agreed to meet. |
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But the government has rejected Mr. Machar's demands |
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that the government release his supporters, |
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who were jailed in the early days of the crisis. |
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At the meeting in Nairobi, |
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Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said |
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the detained political leaders |
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should be included in talks to end the crisis. |
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"The detainees are part of South Sudan's leadership |
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and as such are part of the solution. |
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South Sudan's legal system must process them |
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as it should while they are treated humanely |
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and quickly enabled to be an integral part of the dialogue |
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that will solve the underlying political problems |
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that have brought us to this unfortunate crisis." |
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Mr. Kenyatta also urged the African Union, |
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the United Nations and other countries |
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to promise more support for South Sudan. |
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And he said leaders of other East African nations |
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would not accept what he called |
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the "unconstitutional overthrow" |
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of South Sudan's democratically-elected government. |
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Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn says |
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he supports Mr. Kiir. |
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"It should be underscored |
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that the legitimate government of South Sudan |
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under President Salva Kiir Mayardit |
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is the duly elected representative of the people of South Sudan |
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and it has every responsibility |
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to restore peace and stability throughout the country." |
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The United Nations estimates more than 1,000 people |
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have been killed in violence across the country |
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since the middle of December. |
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It says more than 50,000 people have fled to UN bases. |
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The UN hopes to send more peacekeepers |
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to the country within a few days. |
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UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said |
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the crisis cannot be ended using troops. |
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East African leaders called on all sides |
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in the conflict to meet before the end of the year. |
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And that's In The News, from VOA Learning English. |
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I'm Kelly Jean Kelly. |
