Following a spate of attacks on businesses and homes owned by people from Sudan, the police chief in neighbouring South Sudan has announced a nightly curfew to calm tensions.
Three people have been killed and seven have been injured in violent confrontations with security officers in the capital, Juba, and the north-western town of Aweil, police said. Their nationalities have not been disclosed.
Three houses belonging to Sudanese nationals were set on fire in Aweil, according to officers.
Nobody will be allowed out on the streets between 18:00 and 06:00 local time [16:00 and 04:00 GMT] so as to “prevent any violations of public and private property,” said Insp Gen Abraham Manyuat Peter on Friday.
A second police source told the BBC that officers rescued 45 Sudanese traders in Juba who are now receiving protection at a police station.
South Sudan broke away from Sudan to form an independent country in 2011 after a long-running civil war, but more recently, growing numbers of Sudanese people are fleeing into South Sudan to escape the latest conflict.
Sudan has become the world’s worst humanitarian crisis since the country’s warring generals first turned on each other in April 2023. Half of the population – roughly 25 million people – are in dire need of food and aid, says the UN.
Recent footage showing alleged Sudan soldiers killing South Sudanese civilians appears to show Wad Madani city, the capital of Gezira State in central Sudan within the past few days.
Rights groups confirmed that at least 13 – including some children – were killed there because of their ethnicity.