Jonglei authorities hand over four children to Chollo Kingdom

Authorities in Jonglei State have returned four children who were recently abducted to Chollo Kingdom of Upper Nile State.

The children were abducted last year by White Army militia during fighting in Upper Nile.

Biel Boutros Biel, Commissioner of Fangak County in Jonglei State said they handed over the children to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on 8th January.

“On 8th February, we traced four persons, two young children boys, and two girls, so these children were abducted last year,” Biel said in a statement on Wednesday.

The children are Nyakhamisa Joseph Mayik 18, Nyabeil Aduok Ojang 15, John Aduok Joseph Chan 10, and Kwajiook Adwok Joseph Chan 7.

On 18th January, the Chollo community called on authorities in Jonglei to help recover 100 abductees from Fangak and Ayod Counties.

Biel said they held dialogue with the White Army’s spiritual leaders after discovering that the children were with the group.

 “We talked to the people who abducted the children and we discovered that seven people were brought to Fangak,” he said.

“We managed to trace four through the help of traditional chiefs and they were able to trace the abductors we talk with abductors and the children were traced,” he added.

In November 2022, the White Army attacked Fashoda County of Upper Nile State, displacing more than 30,000 civilians.