South Sudan: 10 soldiers killed and 50 missing, military boat sinks cause by friendly fire
At least 10 soldiers were killed and another 50 were reported missing after friendly fire caused a South Sudanese military boat to sink on the Nile river, the army said Saturday.
“It was an accident. The boat was travelling at night and passed before a (control) post at Lul, which tried to stop the boat. When it did not stop they fired at the boat and it sank,” army spokesman Philip Aguer told AFP, adding that there were about 170 soldiers on board.
“Ten bodies were retrieved from the water… there are about 50 still missing,” he said, adding that 112 survivors were picked up following the accident on Wednesday.
He dismissed as “lies” a statement by rebel group the South Sudan Liberation Army (SSLA) that 108 had died and 73 managed to swim ashore after the vessel was hit by a rocket propelled grenade in an exchange of fire.