Armed youth walk a village in South Sudan’s Pibor region. Photo: AFP

Armed abductors numbering about five have been allegedly sighted around Liriya Payam in Juba County, a situation that has caused panic among the population, according to authorities in the area.

The insecurity comes barely ten days after three children aged 4 and 6 years old were abducted.

A mother of two of the children was also attacked at home and left wounded.

Speaking to Eye Radio this morning, the Director of Liriya Payam said, about five armed individuals were seen loitering in the area in the past two days.

Christopher Sebit alleged that the unidentified armed men attempted to abduct a woman in Langabu Boma two days ago.

“Child abductors are roaming in the area from time to time now and people are panicking and there is fear that more children are going to be abducted,” said Sebit.

“Of course, it is not a new phenomenon this child abductions have been going on in the area for quite a long time,” he said.

“The last abduction case was the one reported on the 2^nd of this month.”

“There is still fear because people still see them moving around and I think 2 days ago they attempted to abduct a woman in Langabu, They usually move in a group of 4 to 5 and they are armed.”

According to the Payam official, he reported the incident to Juba County authorities.

Last week, Central Equatoria state dispatched a delegation to the Pibor Administrative area to dialogue with their counterparts about the rising cases of child abduction in the state.

The outcome of the meeting has not been made public.