Kiir appeals for calm after army officers die in chopper attack, crash

South Sudan President Salva Kiir

South Sudan President Salva Kiir has appealed for calm after several army officers died during an attempt by the UN to evacuate them in the troubled Upper Nile state.

President Kiir said an army general who had been injured during a previous evacuation mission was killed when a UN chopper was shot at.

He said a second helicopter managed to take off after the attack, but crash landed killing all on board.

“I''m appealing to you to remain calm," the President told the nation in a statement, assuring that he will not allow the country to plunge further into chaos as a result of the incident.

"I have said it time and again that our country will not go back to war. Let no one take law into their own hands, and I assure you that the government, which I lead will handle this crisis. We will remain steadfast in the path of peace,” Kiir said.

He condoled with the bereaved families of the General and his men.

“They have died in the service of our nation, and they shall forever remain in our hearts. May their soul rest in peace. And once again, I call for calm nationwide.” 

Kiir noted that on Friday, two UN helicopters flew to Nasir in Upper Nile and while onboarding the General and the officers they came under heavy fire.

He said the General died during the attack.

“I''m therefore, informing the nation that in this process we have lost General Majur Dak Thel, and the officers. Only one pilot and a crew member survived. One of the planes managed to take off, however, it crashed landed in Malakal and killed all the passengers,” he said.

Kiir said General Majur Dak Thel opted to be evacuated last during a previous mission on March 6 where 11 officers were rescued.

The UN said the attack on its helicopter "may constitute a war crime.”

Weeks of fighting in Upper Nile has threatened an already fragile peace deal between Kiir and Vice-President Riek Machar.

In 2013, a rift between the pair sparked a five-year civil war, during which 400,000 people were killed and 2.5 million forced from their homes.

A peace agreement was signed in 2018 but the situation has been fraught ever since.

A fresh Kenya-brokered ceacefire dialogue dubbed "Tumaini Initiative" is still ongoing in Nairobi as violence rages in areas occupied by Machar-allied White Army rebels.

 The White Army is an ethnic militia that was allied with Machar when war broke out in 2013.