South Sudan's military recaptures key town from White Army militia

(Reuters) - South Sudan's service said it had recaptured a cardinal municipality successful Upper Nile authorities that it mislaid to an taste Nuer militia successful March successful clashes which led to the apprehension of First Vice President Riek Machar and a spiralling governmental crisis.

President Salva Kiir has served successful an uneasy power-sharing authorities with Machar since a 2018 bid woody ended a civilian warfare betwixt fighters loyal to the 2 men which killed hundreds of thousands of people.

Machar's detention nether location arrest, for trying to disturbance up a rebellion done his expected enactment for the White Army militia successful Upper Nile, has ignited planetary fears of renewed struggle on taste lines.

Spokespeople for the subject and White Army, which Machar's enactment denies backing, said Nasir municipality was re-captured connected Sunday without a fight.

"We were conscionable taking a tactical withdrawal," said Honson Chuol James, White Army spokesperson, adding that 17 radical were killed during dense bombardment of the adjacent colony of Thuluc.

Army spokesperson Lul Ruai Koang said the subject were capable to debar an ambush successful Thuluc acknowledgment to adjacent aerial support.

"They were spotted erstwhile they were grouping, and they were fired on, and past they dispersed," Koang said.

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni visited Kiir earlier this period aft deploying his service to assistance unafraid South Sudan's superior Juba amid the heightened governmental tensions.

Uganda's subject main Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who is besides Museveni's son, claims his troops person since killed 1,500 fighters from the White Army, which fought alongside Machar's forces successful the civilian war.

Earlier this period Machar's SPLM-IO enactment appeared to beryllium starting to splinter. One faction declared it had temporarily replaced Machar arsenic enactment chairman, portion the equipped helping said it remained loyal to their detained leader.

(Reporting by Nairobi Newsroom; Writing by Hereward Holland; Editing by Ros Russell)