

Kiir's Dinka ethnic group has been accused of attacking other ethnic groups and Machar's Nuer ethnic group has been accused of attacking the Dinka. Although both men had supporters from across South Sudan's ethnic divides, subsequent fighting had ethnic undertones. Ībout 400,000 people were estimated to have been killed in the war by April 2018, including notable atrocities such as the 2014 Bentiu massacre. On 22 February 2020, rivals Kiir and Machar struck a unity deal and formed a coalition government. In August 2018, another power sharing agreement came into effect. A rivalry between the President and Paul Malong Awan, former army chief, also led to fighting. Kiir replaced Machar as First Vice President with Taban Deng Gai, splitting the opposition, and rebel in-fighting became a major part of the conflict. Following a second breakout of fighting within Juba, the SPLM-IO fled to the surrounding and previously peaceful Equatoria region.
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Machar returned to Juba in 2016 and was appointed vice president. A peace agreement known as the "Compromise Peace Agreement" was signed in August 2015. Negotiations were mediated by " IGAD +" (which includes the eight regional nations called the Intergovernmental Authority on Development as well as the African Union, United Nations, China, the EU, USA, UK and Norway). Fighting continued and would be followed by several more ceasefire agreements. In January 2014, the first ceasefire agreement was reached. The United Nations has peacekeepers in the country as part of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). Ugandan troops were deployed to fight alongside the South Sudanese government. Fighting broke out between the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and SPLM-IO, igniting the civil war. Machar denied trying to start a coup and fled to lead the SPLM – in opposition (SPLM-IO). In December 2013, President Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar and ten others of attempting a coup d'état.

The South Sudanese Civil War was a multi-sided civil war in South Sudan between forces of the government and opposition forces. 2018) ġ.5 million+ civilians had fled South Sudan and 2.1 million+ civilians internally displaced (as of 2017) 2015) ġ93,000 non-violent war-related deaths (Apr.
