FVP,Dr. Riek Machar, speaks at the launch of the Commission for Truth, Reconciliation and Healing (CTRH) at the Freedom Hall in Juba - Credit | Office of the President | April 5, 2022

The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has called on all parties in the country to exercise restraint and uphold the 2018 revitalized agreement following what it said were reports of the detention of First Vice President Dr Riek Machar on Wednesday.

UNMISS chief Nicholas Haysom warned again that South Sudanese leaders stand on the brink of relapsing into widespread conflict or taking the country forward towards peace and democracy through the 2018 peace deal.

“Unilateral Amendments by the parties to that agreement that jeopardize the hard-won gains of the past seven years risk returning the country back into a state of war,” Haysom said.

“This will not only devastate South Sudan but also affect the entire region.”

UNMISS reiterated it call on the parties to immediately cease hostilities and engage in constructive dialogue that put the best interest of their people above their own.

South Sudan has experienced a deteriorating security situation and a breakdown in working relationship among the 2018 peace parties following the outbreak of violence in Nasir in Upper Nile, Western Equatoria and Western Bahr el Ghazal.

Recent pressure from regional leaders and diplomatic missions on President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar to hold dialogue have not yielded fruits, amid military clashes at cantonment sites near the capital Juba.