Juba-Bor highway. |Courtesy/ARC.

The Minister of Peace-building in Central Equatoria State, said calm has returned in Mangalla Payam after the state authorities and the organized forces intervened.

This follows violence along the Juba-Bor highway on Wednesday between the host community and internally displaced persons in Mangalla Payam.

Peace-building minister, Gerald Francis Nyuguye, who led a fact-finding team to the area on Thursday said the security situation has been brought under control.

Francis said the local youth and the IDPs adhered to the government’s call to cease hostilities.

He added that the highway is now safe and appealed to the public to desist from spreading false information about the issue.

“I want to tell our people that let them rest assured that there is nothing (to be afraid about),” he said.

“This negative propaganda has made rounds on Facebook, they should disregard it and should not listen to this, now Mangala is safe, the road to Bor is safe, the road to Juba is safe there is nothing.”

“Our youth have adhered to our call and the IDPS in Mangala have adhered to our call and they have ceased all the hostility.”

In a statement on Thursday, the State Information Minister Andruga Mabe Saverio said one person was killed in what he described as a tragic event by suspected cattle herders in the area.

According to Mabe, the incident lead to the displacement of people in the area and caused panic among travelers.