Rumbek Fighting: Government Reports About 71 Dead, Toll Still Unverified
JUBA/RUMBEK, 10 October 2026 — South Sudan’s government says preliminary security reports indicate approximately 71 people were killed in fighting involving armed civilians in Rumbek on Friday. The Ministry of Information said the exact numbers of dead and wounded had not yet been verified. Its initial estimate includes four soldiers, according to its statement.
Update to Friday’s initial report
Our first alert reported four deaths in the 8 October Nyangkot clashes, based on the police account available at the time. That was not the full toll from the subsequent fighting inside Rumbek. The government’s later estimate is approximately 71, with the exact number still unverified.
The later estimate substantially changes the picture from Friday morning, when Lakes State police reported four deaths in earlier clashes at Nyangkot village and said casualties inside the town remained unknown. The four deaths near Nyangkot should not be added to the government’s 71 without a clear official accounting of whether they are included.
Police spokesperson Lt. Col. Elijah Mabor Makuac said fighting between armed youths from the Nyang and Pakam communities spread into Rumbek town. Radio Tamazuj reported clashes in Makuriric, Malual-Akan, Maborngap, Achol-Then, Malith and Akuac and said residents fled toward Ronga, Cueiadukan and Adol. The immediate trigger has not been established publicly; responsibility should not be assigned to either community as a whole.
The government said joint security forces had brought the situation under control, arrested four armed civilians and recovered four firearms. These are official claims that require follow-up on the ground. The statement did not give a civilian casualty breakdown or a verified displacement count.
Daniel Laat Kon, a Lakes State civil society coordinator, told Radio Tamazuj that armed youths looted and vandalised police headquarters and urged authorities to protect wounded people at Rumbek State Hospital. Those specific accounts have not been independently verified by South Sudan Press. No safe route or hospital access advice should be inferred from the reported deployment.
Analysis: protection and verification
Fighting inside a state capital threatens households, health care and basic policing. The urgent questions are whether the violence has stopped throughout the affected neighbourhoods, whether patients can safely reach treatment and whether security forces can prevent reprisals. The preliminary toll needs reconciliation through police, hospital and burial records, with care to avoid double counting.
South Sudan Press is seeking updated figures from Lakes State police, Rumbek State Hospital, local officials and independent monitors. We will update this report when verified information becomes available.
Sources: Government account carried by SSBC, 9 October; Radio Tamazuj on the preliminary estimate; Radio Tamazuj’s earlier police and civil society accounts.