Two Kenyan Truck Drivers Killed in Highway Attack in South Sudan, Two Others Missing

Two Kenyan truck drivers were on Wednesday reportedly killed in South Sudan while two others went missing.

Nation reports that the two were killed after their trucks were ambushed by gunmen along the Juba-Nimule highway. 

Col. James Dak, the deputy spokesperson of South Sudan National Police Service said officers responded after receiving a report of an incident where drivers were attacked and their trucks set on fire. South Sudan authorities could not confirm the nationality or the number of drivers caught in the attack.

Kenya Truck Drivers Association chairman David Kerote said two of their members lost their lives in the ambush and another two are missing. 

“I was informed that three trucks – two fuel trucks and one goods truck – were attacked by a group of armed people along the Juba-Nimule road at around 4 am yesterday. Two drivers were burnt to death and two were missing,” he told Nation. 

“We can’t tell whether those who went missing have died or are in hiding. I have informed the Kenyan government about the incident and I appeal for investigations into the occurrence.” 

A driver who arrived at the scene after the incident said he saw two bodies that had been burnt beyond recognition in trucks. 

The highway links South Sudan's capital Juba to the border with Uganda and is the main route used by Kenyan truck drivers to ferry transit goods to South Sudan. The road is infamous for attacks by militia groups in South Sudan.