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Germany Closes Embassy in South Sudan as Nation Edges Toward Civil War

Rising violence between President Kiir and Vice President Machar threatens to shatter the fragile peace established by a 2018 agreement.

FILE - Children sit and play on the remains of a tank, at the river port in Renk, South Sudan on May 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, file)
South Sudan's President Salva Kiir Mayardit prepares for a group photo during the opening of the 38th Ordinary Session of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union at the African Union Commission (AUC) headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, February 15, 2025. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri/File Photo
FILE - Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock speaks during a press conference in Damascus, Syria, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, file)

Overview

  • The German government has temporarily closed its embassy in Juba, citing safety concerns for its employees as violence escalates in South Sudan.
  • German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned that South Sudan is on the brink of civil war after years of fragile peace established by a 2018 agreement.
  • Tensions between President Salva Kiir and Vice President Riek Machar have intensified, with both leaders accused of failing to implement the peace deal and exacerbating the violence.
  • South Sudan has faced ongoing political instability and ethnic divisions since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011, including a civil war from 2013 to 2018 that claimed over 400,000 lives.
  • International efforts to mediate are underway, but the political rivalry between Kiir and Machar remains a major obstacle to achieving lasting peace.