At least two children were abducted last week in Lomeyen Payam in Kapoeta North County of South Sudan’s Eastern Equatoria state, officials said.

4-year-old Namuya Chapi and 5-year-old Lokamu Lokai Ngole were abducted by youth suspected to be from the Greater Pibor Administrative Area, GPAA while they were herding on Wednesday.

Kapoeta North County Commissioner Ephone Emmanuel Lolimo told Radio Tamazuj that the local youth are still in pursuit of the abductors as footprints head towards the Pibor area.

“The children were abducted at 9 am while they were looking after their goats. Up to now, the youth are still pursuing the abductors. The primary suspects are the Murle because the footmarks are going towards their direction,” Emmanuel said.

The commissioner says this is the second such incident this month. He says at the beginning of the month a child was abducted but was later recovered.

“I have already sent the document to the state authorities they will be able to communicate with their counterparts because I don’t have communications with them. Also, their administrator is at the level of the governor so he will be able to communicate with him directly. We really need to fight against this war of child abduction and we are also urging our neighbors to stop it,” he added.

Eastern Equatoria State youth President James Otililing Oliang expressed dismay over the continuous attacks on children in the state and demanded that the perpetrators, when caught, face the full wrath of the law.

“Anything to do with human trafficking, kidnapping is always unacceptable, the law condemns this in the strongest terms possible. We, as the youth of the state this is what we call a barbaric act,” Otililing said. “We appeal to the authorities concerned to exert much pressure particularly to the youth of greater Pibor to refrain from such inhuman behaviors.”

GPAA authorities were not available for comment on the matter.

In August, a woman was killed and her two children abducted by unknown gunmen.

Source: Radio Tamazuj