Ousting of Omar al-Bashir has neighbour South Sudan worried about fragile peace
Both the South Sudanese government and former rebels have expressed alarm over the coup
Juba — Thursday's military coup in Sudan sparked anxiety in neighbouring South Sudan that the toppling of longtime President Omar al-Bashir could scupper a fragile agreement that ended South Sudan's five-year civil war. South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and former rebel leader Riek Machar signed a peace agreement last year that calls on them to form a unity government on May 12. But key requirements — including integrating their forces — have not been met. The deal was guaranteed by Sudan, but the ouster of Bashir transfers much more responsibility for the success of the agreement to former arch-enemies Kiir and Machar, said Alan Boswell, a senior analyst with Brussels-based think tank International Crisis Group. In Sudan, defence minister Awad Mohamed Ahmed Ibn Auf announced the end of Bashir's rule, saying the country would enter a two-year period of military rule to be followed by presidential elections. Both the South Sudanese government and former rebels expressed alarm over ...
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