A panel of UN rights experts on April 3 named senior officials and military leaders in South Sudan who they say warrant criminal prosecution for their part in grave atrocities against civilians. A year-long investigation by the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan details the involvement of both government and rebel leaders in widespread extrajudicial killings, as well as rape and sexual slavery.

The report identifies Joseph Monytuil, governor of Unity state, and Lt. Gen. Thoi Chany Reat of the South Sudan People's Defense Forces, in relation to state-sanctioned killings in Mayom county in August 2022. Four captured rebel officers were summarily executed by government troops in killings that were captured on video and shared widely. Three were killed by firing squad, while a fourth was burned alive in a hut. The report also names Gordon Koang, the county commissioner of Koch, who was accused of leading horrific attacks on civilians in neighboring Leer county between February and April 2022. (AP, VOA)