Torit, 13 December, 2025 / 12:20 pm (ACI Africa).
The Local Ordinary of the Catholic Diocese of Torit in South Sudan has appealed for peace, dialogue, and reconciliation following a surge in violence across Eastern Equatoria State.
In a statement issued Friday, December 12, Bishop Emmanuel Bernardino Lowi Napeta expressed concern about the Tuesday, December 9 attack where two officers from the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) were killed and six others injured after suspected SPLM-IO fighters ambushed a government convoy.
“The people of Eastern Equatorial State have always been peace-loving people; however, the recent attack in Torit has left a negative impact on our society, more especially on the vulnerable people such as children, women, the elderly, and those with disability,” Bishop Napeta says.
He adds, “Due to that alarming situation, some of them took refuge in the parish of Our Lady of Holy Rosary in Torit, with the hope that it is secure.”
“This incident reminds us of the devastating consequences of war that our country has experienced in its history. We must know that war dehumanizes human beings, displaces and forces them to take refuge in places where they have no access to basic human needs to keep them surviving,” the South Sudanese Catholic Bishop says.
