Security agents from South Sudan’s National Security Service (NSS) raided the residence of detained First Vice President Riek Machar and his wife, Interior Minister Angelina Teny, turning the home upside down in a sweeping search for electronic devices.
According to senior opposition officials, NSS operatives combed through the couple’s living quarters—throwing out mattresses, scattering clothes, and rifling through personal belongings—in a bid to locate and confiscate Teny’s phone, laptop, and internet modem.
These were her only remaining tools for communication with the outside world following the earlier disconnection of internet services to the residence.
Teny, a leading figure in the opposition SPLM-IO party, has been staying in a section of the residence since Machar’s arrest in March, reportedly to provide him with food and essentials. With her devices seized and security reportedly blocking even visual access to the outside world, she and Machar are now in complete isolation.
“She’s not just restricted—she’s under a total lockdown,” said SPLM-IO spokesperson and Irrigation Minister Pal Mai Deng. “The raid and confiscation show the government’s intent to cut all contact with the outside and silence the opposition leadership.”
The NSS has not issued a statement on the raid, and efforts to reach spokesperson David John Kumuri were unsuccessful.
Opposition leaders say the state’s aggressive actions—ranging from detaining SPLM-IO members to preventing lawmakers from leaving the country—represent a serious violation of the 2018 peace agreement.
International actors, including the U.S. and UN, have warned that the situation threatens to plunge the country back into widespread conflict unless the government reverses course and resumes political dialogue.
