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JUBA, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan's President Salva Kiir on Friday ordered integration of troops belonging to the former rebel force SPLA-IO into the government army.
Government Spokesperson Michael Makuei told journalists in the capital Juba that President Kiir ordered establishment of cantonment sites for the opposition troops in Equatoria, Bar-el-Ghazel and Upper Nile regions for the integration as required by the August 2015 peace agreement aimed at ending South Sudan's civil war.
Makuei however said opposition forces rallying behind ousted Vice President Riek Machar will not be part of the arrangement.
Renewed fighting erupted in Juba in early July between government troops led by Kiir and opposition troops loyal to Machar. Kiir sacked Machar later that month.
The two sides had fought a civil war which broke out in December 2013 and left tens of thousands dead. The August 2015 peace agreement failed to quell the fresh violence.
"Anybody who defected with Machar is no longer an SPLA-IO member and has to find a new name. And anybody who will not report to the cantonment site will be deemed as a rebel," Makuei said.
It remains unclear whether Machar and his followers will heed the president's order after Machar's disappearance from Juba last month following the deadly fighting.
Machar was replaced by his former chief negotiator Taban Deng Gai, after he failed to listen to a 48-hour ultimatum calling for him to return Juba.
Machar said he will only return to Juba after a regional protection force proposed by the African Union is deployed to the capital city to buffer the rival army factions.
The UN Security Council is expected to meet on Friday to vote on a resolution granting regional protection force to the UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan, enhancing their strength to protect UN personnel and civilians.
Unrest in South Sudan has killed tens of thousands and displaced nearly three million people. Renewed violence last month further uprooted over 100,000 people from their homes into neighboring countries. Enditem
