JUBA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan army chief has ordered armed forces and rebel fighters to report to military camps as part of efforts to form a unified army of 83,000 personnel to support implementation of the peace deal.
Gabriel Jok Riak Makol, chief of general staff of South Sudan People's Defense Forces and the chair of the Joint Defense Board issued an ultimatum to all sectors and division commanders including opposition's commanders to assemble forces into cantonment sites before the end of July.
"You are hereby directed to commence the assembly of all forces under your respective command to the nearest cantonment sites or barracks with immediate effect," Makol said in a statement issued in Juba on Monday.
He directed all the security institutions to notify the Joint Defence Board on the completion of the process not later than July 31.
Makol observed that cantonment will allow other activities of the security arrangements such as registration, screening for eligibility for future service, disarmament, demobilization and rehabilitation to start.
South Sudan descended into civil war in late 2013, and the conflict has created one of the fastest growing refugee crises in the world.
The United Nations estimates that four million South Sudanese have been displaced internally and externally.
In September 2018, South Sudan's conflicting parties signed a final peace deal in Ethiopia after negotiations brokered by the Sudanese government and mandated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development.
