All Passengers Safe After Ambush On Buses In South Sudan

All passengers who were travelling on three Kampala-bound buses from South Sudan when they were attacked by gunmen on Monday morning have safely been escorted to the Ugandan side.

Earlier reports had indicated that scores of Ugandans were feared to have been killed or abducted after three Ugandan buses were ambushed along Nimule-Juba Highway in South Sudan by unknown gunmen.

According to Major Caesar Olweny, the UPDF Fourth Division Spokesperson, the attacked buses belong to Echo Bus, Gateway and Friendship Bus Companies.

He said the attack happened at Jebelen in Eastern Equatoria state, some 120 kilometers from the Ugandan border side of Elegu in Amuru District.
He added that the gunmen burnt down the buses and robbed passengers of all their valuables before abducting some of them, and releasing them after a short while.

Meanwhile speaking to KFM on Monday evening, the Aswa region police spokesperson Jimmy Patrick Okema said that all passengers had been escorted by the Sudan People’s Liberation Army to Ugandan border side aboard Friendship and Gateway Buses.

“They were robbed of everything and some were taken away but were later released. The driver of the Friendship bus was shot in the thigh as he attempted to escape. He is now admitted at Juba hospital”, Mr. Okema said.

Story By Samuel Ssebuliba

Written by David Kugonza