South Sudan court jails 10 soldiers for rape and murder

A South Sudanese military court has handed out jail sentences to 10 soldiers for rape of foreign aid workers and murder of a local journalist in 2016.

Eleven soldiers were on trial but one was set free due to the lack of charges against him.

In Thursday’s ruling, where the length of the sentences ranged from seven years to life, the court also ordered the government to pay damages to the victims.

The case was widely seen as a test of will by President Salva Kiir’s government to bring accountability in the military that has long drawn accusations of widespread rights violations and a culture of impunity. 

The attack, one of the worst on aid workers in South Sudan’s civil war, took place in July 2016 as President Kiir’s troops won a three-day battle in the capital Juba over opposition forces loyal to former vice president Riek Machar.

Manager of the Terrain Hotel, where the attack happened, Mike Woodward, told a court last year that “between 50 to 100” soldiers arrived at the hotel in the afternoon and began looting an hour later.

“Five women working with humanitarian organisations were then raped. John Gatluak was shot at 6:15pm,” said Woodward.

Witnesses told Reuters news agency that victims phoned UN peacekeepers stationed a mile away and asked for help which did not arrive.

The military head of the UN peacekeeping mission was sacked and the political head resigned over the incident.

SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies