JUBA – South Sudan’s security leadership has resolved to permanently eliminate illegal checkpoints and boost highway patrols amid worsening security situation in several parts of the country.
The decision was reached at a meeting held on Wednesday by the leadership of South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF), South Sudan National Police Service (SSNPS) and National Security Service (NSS), to review the prevailing security situation in the country.
“After lengthy and fruitful deliberations, they resolved to collaborate and work collectively to permanently eliminate illegal roadblocks, form joint security forces to conduct regular road patrols and track down and hold accountable groups that keep on re-establishing illegal roadblocks,” reads the order, published by SSPDF Director of Public Relations, Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai.
The security situation in the country has significantly deteriorated since March 2025, marked by renewed armed conflict, political instability, and a worsening humanitarian crisis.
This decline is primarily attributed to renewed fighting between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and suspended First Vice President Riek Machar, threatening a return to full-scale civil war.
Incidents of highway ambushes in the Equatoria region and along the Juba-Bor road have increased in the past two months.