Unity Land Media

South Sudan
Behind the scenes of Benjamin Bol Mel's fall from grace
The departure of the Juba strongman is evidence of the rising influence of Adut Salva Kiir, daughter of head of state Salva Kiir.
The battle for the succession of the president is only just beginning.

The purge is not yet over. After dismissing second vice president Benjamin Bol Mel on 12 November and stripping him of his rank of general to reduce him to the standing of ordinary soldier, placed under house arrest, President Salva Kiir continues to show the door to his former ally's supporters. On 17 November, the head of state removed five senior figures from office, including ministers Joseph Geng Akech (justice) and Simon Mijok Mijak (environment).
Over the weeks prior to his departure, several of his representatives had already been fired, giving notice of the fate awaiting Bol Mel, who had gained great influence in Juba in just a few months (AI, 07/03/25).

Members of the presidential party, Sudan People's Liberation Movement-In Government (SPLM-IG), within which Bol Mel held until recently the position of second in command, put the second vice president's fall down to the influence of Kiir's daughter, Adut Salva Kiir. Differences relating to the management of moneys from oil income and financing from international partners, including the United Arab Emirates, which Bol Mel was close to, have been held up in both government and opposition camps to explain why Bol Mel has been pushed to the side.

Communication on social networks
Appointed to the post of presidential envoy on special programmes in August, Adut Salva Kiir has rapidly asserted her influence in the circles of power and has, since October, developed her own communication channels on social media. She has made her mark at the State House, where key figures were fired as of early November, including Minister of Presidential Affairs Chol Ajongo and the president's office manager Rita Lotua, appointed ambassador to Rwanda, a country in which Sudan does not yet have an embassy.

These individuals have been replaced by others strongly opposed to Bol Mel, such as the country's former tax boss, new Minister of Presidential Affairs Africano Mande Gedima. Dismissed from her post as Kenyan ambassador in March, Monica Achol Abel has also made a comeback in Juba thanks to her reconciliation with Adut Salva. The former diplomat has considerable influence with the head of state. Mabior Garang de Mabior, son of independence hero John Garang, was appointed minister of environment just two weeks after meeting Adut Salva in Nairobi.

This purge partially overturns the one led by Salva Kiir against key members of his own camp and security circles since October 2024, carried out to facilitate Bol Mel's rise. Several of those who had been pushed aside have made their return over recent weeks, including James Wani Igga, who is back in the two posts he was fired from to make way for Bol Mel. At the age of 75, this political veteran reassumes office as the country's second vice president with responsibility for economic affairs and second in command of the SPLM-IG, making him first in the line of succession should there be a vacancy at the head of government.
Barnaba Bak Chol, reputed to be anti-Bol Mel, has again taken up his role as minister of finance after a year away, and Paul Nang Majok returned as head of the South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF) in October, just four months after losing the post.

Shake-up in foreign policy
In the absence of Oil Minister Puot Kang Chol, an ally of opposition leader Riek Machar and imprisoned alongside him since March, the post of ministry undersecretary is the most strategic of all. Bol Mel supporter Deng Lual Wol was removed from office in early November only to be reappointed a week later. In spite of this reprieve, he is likely to be in the sights of the authorities for his management of oil income, constituting 90% of the state's revenue.

The adoptive son of former Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir (1989-2019) and an admired negotiator, Tutkew Gatluak Manime, is also in line to take up talks with opposition leader Machar, imprisoned since March and currently facing charges of crimes against humanity (AI, 29/09/25). Members of Machar's Sudan People's Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) hope that Bol Mel's departure will help to usher in a period of openness and obtain the former vice president's pardon or even his rehabilitation. The appointment of the outgoing minister of information, Michael Makuei Lueth, to the ministry of justice is seen as an encouraging sign.

Opposition figures also think that the ousting of Bol Mel, a Yoweri Museveni ally, will also have an impact on the deployment of the Ugandan army. The Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces have had a presence in South Sudan since March to support the government in the face of armed groups loyal to Machar and are accused of taking control of strategic land and resources (AI, 16/09/25).

Machar's hopes
Bol Mel's sudden departure has shaken up both foreign policy and Juba's local political scene. The fallen second vice president had close links with Abu Dhabi and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Sudanese paramilitaries. At the same time as getting rid of Bol Mel, Salva Kiir has brought back Manime, who was thrown out in January, as security adviser. The latter, in contrast, is on an amiable footing with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), who are opposed to the RSF.

After moving closer to the RSF and hosting some of its leaders and fighters (AI, 04/09/25), Juba is now anxious to adopt a more balanced posture with regard to Port Sudan, on which South Sudan is dependent for the export of its oil. Just a few days after Bol Mel was pushed out, the Sudanese government gave notice to the South Sudanese government that RSF attacks on hydrocarbon storage and transport infrastructure had forced it into the emergency closure of these facilities.
While he wishes to give undertakings to the Sudanese Army, Salva Kiir is nevertheless likely to send signals of loyalty to the United Arab Emirates, which he visited in late October for the third time this year to receive medical treatment.

Colonel Robert Anguei Mayom, also called “Mike Mike,” is now the new leader of the Special Forces in the Tiger Division.

Video: Two cars and a rickshaw reportedly hit by Akuac Wol’s vehicle in Hai Tijaria this afternoon as she tried to escape a National Security arrest.

National Security reportedly attempted to arrest her as part of a crackdown on political social media livestreamers. Others arrested last week include Akot Matuongdit, Amathjok, and Deng Nice King. Another social media commentator, Gokwel, was also arrested and released after spending a night in National Security custody.

Akuac sustained gunshot wound and currently receiving treatment in hospital in stable condition.

JUBA - South Sudan’s Ministry of Health has stepped up surveillance along its eastern border after Ethiopia confirmed an outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus.

The outbreak was declared on Nov. 14 in Jinka town after laboratory tests confirmed the highly infectious hemorrhagic fever.

No cases have been detected in South Sudan, but authorities say monitoring has been intensified in Kapoeta East, Pibor, Pochalla and Akobo, which border the affected region.

Health Minister Sarah Cleto said the government and partners held an emergency meeting over the weekend, and the Public Health Emergency Operations Center has been activated to support screening, risk assessments and rapid response efforts.

Cleto urged the public to remain calm, saying the ministry and its partners had “intensified surveillance, preparedness and readiness measures to prevent any importation and spread of the virus,” and encouraged citizens to report suspected symptoms through the toll-free hotline 6666.

Marburg causes sudden high fever, vomiting, diarrhea and severe bleeding and can kill up to 88% of patients without early treatment, according to the World Health Organization.

Photo: WHO South Sudan