A senior military figure has directed troops on the front lines in Jonglei State to show no mercy, explicitly stating that not even the elderly should be spared, in comments that have raised serious concerns among observers and rights advocates.

Gen. Johnson Olony, who serves as assistant chief of defence forces for mobilisation and disarmament and leads the Agwelek militia, delivered the remarks while speaking to his fighters in Duk County, Jonglei State.

“This time round, I told the chief [Chief of Defense Forces] yesterday this will mark the end of problems in the Upper Nile region,” Olony stated.

“When we arrive there, don’t spare an elderly, don’t spare a chicken, don’t spare a house and anything. We are tired of problems every year until we have gotten old in problems.”

The Agwelek militia—partially integrated into the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF)—has recently been sent to multiple locations, including the Heglig oilfields close to the Sudan border.

The deployment follows a tripartite agreement between President Salva Kiir’s administration and opposing Sudanese factions to secure vital oil installations.

President Kiir appointed Olony to the assistant chief of defence forces position in January 2025, despite his turbulent history involving multiple defections, armed confrontations, and repeated accusations of serious human rights violations.

The Greater Upper Nile region—including Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Unity states—has long suffered from cycles of ethnically motivated violence, with civilians, especially women, children, and the elderly, frequently suffering the heaviest consequences during military campaigns.

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and various international observers have repeatedly cautioned that such inflammatory statements from military leaders often signal impending escalations in civilian killings, sexual violence, forced displacement, and widespread looting.

Addressing Agwelek troops preparing to confront SPLA-IO forces and the White Army, which recently seized SSPDF garrisons in the Lou Nuer areas, including Pajut in Duk County, Gen. Olony framed the deployment as a national duty rather than a financial motivation.

“We are not fighting for salaries, we are defending the nation,” he said. “It is our time and we are up to the task. We are here for the sake of the nation, not salaries.”

He told the fighters he had recently travelled to Bentiu and Malakal as part of a broader reorganisation and mobilisation effort.

“We have not met for a long time because I was busy with reorganisation and mobilisation. I went to Bentiu, I went to Malakal and thank God we have met here today,” he said.

Olony acknowledged logistical shortcomings, including a lack of vehicles, heavy weapons and basic equipment such as boots for his Agwelek forces deployed to northern Jonglei State.

“The things that you lack are the boots or shoes,” he said. “The boots I brought with me will not be enough for all of you.”

He warned that if the government in Juba failed to provide vehicles and weapons, his Agwelek forces would refuse to advance.

“If the government fails to bring the vehicles, we will remain behind and let those who have vehicles go ahead,” he said, adding that he would demand at least 30 pickup trucks mounted with heavy guns.

“If the forces who already have vehicles and guns don’t want to go to the frontline, we will take those things from them so that we go.”

Olony described the conflict in the Greater Upper Nile region as cyclical and ethnically charged, involving the Dinka, Nuer and Shilluk communities.

“We are tired of wars and problems in the Greater Upper Nile region between the Dinka, Nuer and Shilluk,” he said. “Every year there is a coup, every year there is a problem, and all these problems start in the Upper Nile region.”

Repeating his earlier remarks, Olony again declared that the coming government offensive would be decisive.

“When we arrive there, don’t spare an elderly, don’t spare a chicken, don’t spare a house and anything,” he said. “We are tired of problems every year until we have gotten old in problems.”

“I joined the SPLA when I was as young as 19 years old and now I am 52 years old, bullet after bullet without clear reasons,” he added. “I will end this problem this year.”

Olony also revealed that most Agwelek fighters currently deployed to the front lines in Jonglei have not been formally absorbed into the SSPDF, despite provisions in the peace agreement calling for unified national forces.

“Most of the forces and soldiers currently deployed to frontlines from the Agwelek are not absorbed into the SSPDF,” he said. “But it is us who have to absorb ourselves. We are not going to wait for someone to come and integrate us into the army.”

He dismissed concerns over official recognition of Agwelek ranks, saying battlefield authority mattered more than formal payrolls.

“Anyone who feels his right has been infringed, come to me and I will confirm the rank that you want,” he said. “This is a rank for fighting, not salaries.”

In a statement that appeared to mock what he described as widespread and arbitrary promotions within the security services, Olony added:
“Let everyone have ranks. From now onward a man will be a Major General and his wife will be a Brigadier General and your child will be a Colonel if this is what South Sudanese want.”