War could erupt in South Sudan’s Bahr Al Ghazal region, if the former army chief of staff Paul Malong Awan is permitted to leave South Sudan, Ateny Wek Ateny, spokesperson for President Salva Kiir has warned.

Awan wants to travel to Nairobi to identify the body of his daughter who recently died. However, Juba says the body can be identified by means of DNA.

“The situation we are in right now is very volatile. Awan’s being in Juba is related to peace in Bahr El Ghazal region,” the Sudan Tribune reported Ateny saying.

Awan, a former governor, was fired by Kiir in May this year and replaced by the then former deputy chief of general staff for administration and finance, Lieutenant-General James Ajongo Mawut.

Prior to Awan’s removal, the South Sudanese military, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLA), had been repeatedly accused of gross human rights abuses, including rape, against civilians in the conflict areas.

Tens of thousands of South Sudanese have been killed, and two million displaced, in the three-year conflict.

There are now concrete fears that the planned elections for next year could bring further chaos and violence to the world’s newest country.