The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Dr Barnaba Marial, has been sacked.

The minister was removed through a presidential decree announced on the state-run SSTV last evening.

This comes amidst public outcry over a letter in which his ministry referred to former minister Dr Luka Biong Deng, who hails from Abyei, as a citizen of the Republic of Sudan.

The letter to the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights was written on the 9^th of March and signed by Dr Barnaba Marial.

The Minister was trying to explain why Dr Luka was removed from his position as Director of the Centre for Peace at the University of Juba, after organizing a debate on the creation of more states.

Several politicians had called for Dr Marial’s resignation over the issue, including the Former Detainees who said the letter was unconstitutional and has unfairly rubbished the people of Abyei.

Dr Marial had been the minister of foreign affairs since July 2013.