A new report by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan has accused Uganda of assisting South Sudan in aerial bombardments that killed and severely burned civilians during fighting in 2025. According to the inquiry, joint airstrikes by South Sudanese and Ugandan forces targeted populated areas largely inhabited by members of the Nuer community, the country’s second largest ethnic group, in regions associated with opposition forces. The report says the attacks involved the use of improvised incendiary devices that set homes and surrounding areas ablaze.
Ugandan troops have been stationed in South Sudan to support the government of President Salva Kiir against forces loyal to opposition leader Riek Machar. Ugandan authorities maintain that their presence is legal and based on a bilateral security agreement with South Sudan’s government. Fighting intensified after Machar, who previously served as vice president was suspended in September and later put on trial on charges including treason. He denies the allegations. Government forces have since increased military pressure on areas believed to be strongholds of his supporters.
One of the attacks documented in the report occurred in March 2025 in Wunaliet, about 15 kilometers from Juba. Witnesses told investigators that aircraft dropped containers of flammable liquid, causing houses to ignite. Survivors described civilians being severely burned, including a child who was “burnt beyond recognition.” A nearby barracks housing opposition fighters was also hit. Days after the strike, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Uganda’s top military commander and son of President Yoweri Museveni posted on social media that Uganda had bombed opposition forces, although the message was later deleted. The UN report also cited flight-tracking data indicating that an aircraft seen circling the area had earlier departed from Uganda and was operated by the Ugandan military.
While the investigation did not determine the full scale of Uganda’s involvement, it concluded that the operations showed “high levels of planning, operational integration and command-level authorization.” Uganda has denied participating in combat operations or using prohibited weapons, insisting that its forces do not target civilians. However, rights groups including Amnesty International have previously accused Uganda of violating the 2018 UN arms embargo on South Sudan by providing military support to the government in Juba. The renewed violence threatens the fragile peace established under the 2018 agreement that ended South Sudan’s civil war, a conflict that killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions.
