One of the communities that was attacked. It was in this one that the home was burned.
Just a couple weeks ago we received reports of the first LRA attack in South Sudan in over two years. It is troubling to see such disturbances in a region that had been relatively safe from LRA violence for so long. Shortly after the receiving these reports, we traveled to Ezo, the community that was attacked, to get the on-the-ground update of what happened that night and in the aftermath of the violence. Here’s what we found.
Ezo is in West Equatoria, South Sudan but sits right on the border of CAR and DRC, both of which lack the local defense groups that have kept South Sudan relatively safe for the past couple years. Border towns in South Sudan are historically more susceptible to LRA attacks given the lack of security in neighboring countries.
The LRA arrived in Ezo at midnight and split into two groups that simultaneously moved through the village and the surrounding area for nearly two hours looting goods, attacking civilians, and burning homes. They killed one man who was a dear member of the Ezo community, leaving behind his wife and two young boys who are now being cared for by close relatives and the church.
The home that was burned down by the LRA.
The LRA also abducted another man and one boy. The man was held captive for one day and then released, but the boy was used as a porter to carry their stolen goods and heavy packs. While preliminary reports about the incident weren’t able to confirm if LRA were in fact the perpetrators of this attack, based on information from the man who was abducted and released, there is now little doubt that the LRA are responsible. According to his account, four of the six men that abducted him were Ugandan and spoke Luo (the Acholi language); the other two were Congolese and spoke Lingala.
As soon as word of the attack reached the local defense force, the Arrow Boys, the group quickly deployed out of Ezo but were too late to catch the LRA. The Arrow Boys proceeded to pursue the LRA group for two hours who reportedly moved south and may have crossed the border into DRC. The SPLA (the South Sudanese national military) arrived on site following the Arrow Boys’ arrival, and are now maintaining increased security in the area.
It was our first time visiting a community so recently after a LRA attack and, to be honest, the immediacy of it weighed heavily. With security escorts we visited some of the sites that were attacked including a home that had been burned nearly to the ground. Deep mounds of ash were piled all around and we could still smell the burn. The home belonged to one of the many families that were devastated that night. Just after midnight the woman who lived there woke up to strange sounds in her compound. She quickly realized that these were not familiar nighttime sounds—people were moving through her plot quickly and aggressively. She screamed from her hut to her husband who was sleeping in the house nearby with his second wife and ran to join them. The three of them managed to lock themselves in their home as the LRA ransacked the rest of their compound. When they arrived at the small brick house they tried to beat down the metal door but were unable to get through. Instead of leaving however, the LRA lit the house on fire with the three individuals barricaded inside. Fortunately, the husband and wives were able to get out of the house and escape the LRA but all of their belongings were lost in the fire. The LRA took nothing, but still managed to destroy these people’s home and livelihood. The family ran a small shop out of their compound, but with all of their goods and personal possessions burned they now have nothing. They have since fled the area into the closest city center and do not plan to return anytime soon. This is the case for residents across the whole of Ezo County.
We spoke with the Bishop of Ezo, John Zawo, who was distraught by this family’s displacement and the countless others who have fled their village as a result of this most recent attack. Hundreds if not thousands in Ezo County were forced to leave their homes between 2008-2010 when LRA violence in South Sudan was at its height. However, since 2012, families were beginning to return to their homes and attempting to rebuild their lives. Now, this most recent attack has reinstated widespread fear and again, people are fleeing their land, suspending community restoration.
Just after the attack in Ezo, we asked you to help fund a defection flier distribution specifically targeting the LRA group responsible for this violence and resulting trauma, encouraging these LRA combatants to surrender. With your support we were able to raise $20,000 that funded a flier distribution in the area. We thank you for continuing to fund programs on the ground to address these devastating events. There is still much work to be done to restore peace in the border area of West Equatoria South Sudan and address the psychological and material damage that has occurred across the region. As always, you’ll be the first to know as we learn more from communities on the ground in central Africa.
Our security (SPLA) escorts that accompanied us into the village.
Thank you for standing with us in the fight to restore communities in central Africa and finally achieve zeroLRA.
It can’t happen without you.
*Information is based on eye witness accounts and testimonies of civilians and local leaders in Ezo County. All information will undergo further scrutiny to meet verification criteria before being reflected in the LRA Crisis Tracker.
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