Gold mine attack in South Sudan kills at least 73 people: vice president

An attack on a gold mine in South Sudan, one of the world’s poorest and most volatile countries, killed at least 73 people and wounded 25, the vice president said.

The assault at the weekend targeted the mining area of Khor Kaltan, around 70 kilometres (45 miles) by road southwest of the capital Juba.

“At least 73 local miners have been tragically killed and 25 others seriously injured,” Vice President James Wani Igga said in a statement. “We must provide urgent medical care and evacuation for the 25 injured.”

“We must establish formal inquiry to determine the identity and motive of these ‘unidentified assailants’,” Igga added.

A security source requesting anonymity confirmed the toll to AFP, while a diplomatic source put the figure at between 75 and 86 deaths.

Since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011, the world’s youngest country has suffered a series of deadly conflicts.

It has seen an uptick in violence between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and fighters linked to First Vice President Riek Machar, mostly in the central-eastern Jonglei State.

The security source told AFP that “it’s believed the attack was carried out” by Machar’s opposition forces but conceded that reports were “mixed”.

A spokesman for Machar, who has been confined to house arrest for a year, denied that his forces were behind the attack and pointed the finger at the South Sudanese army.