Clashes within the rebel faction of South Sudan United Movement/Armed Forces (SSUM/A) at South Sudan border with Sudan left three soldiers dead, an official said.

The senior rebel official loyal to General Peter Gatdet Yaka confirmed the incident occurred at an undisclosed border area.

He said misunderstanding occurred between officers from the Gok community and relatives of Gatdet from Mayom county on who should head their intelligence.

“We are working on restoration of trust among the soldiers, but what I can confirm to you is that at the movement, most of them vacated their deployment locations,” said the official who preferred anonymity.

Fighting, eyewitnesses said, erupted after the arrest of the former military intelligence chief whom Gatdet replaced with his nephew.

The Gok section of Bul Nuer where the ex-military intelligence chief hails from felt out with Gatdet and clashes began, a source said.

In 2015, Gatdet abandoned the main armed opposition movement led by South Sudan’s former First Vice-President Riek Machar and formed SSUM/A.

He is currently based in Khartoum where he commands a few soldiers.

REPORT/SUDAN TRIBUNE