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South Sudan rebel leader Riek Machar arrived in Juba on Wednesday, his first time setting foot in the capital city since he fled in July 2016 following the collapse of a peace deal.
Machar, who has spent the last two years living in exile, traveled to South Sudan to take part in a peace ceremony. He was greeted by his former rival President Salva Kiir at Juba airport on Wednesday morning.
Machar (L) and Kiir (R) signed a peace deal in Sudan in September
Machar is set to be reinstated as vice president under the terms of a recently signed peace agreement. The two South Sudanese leaders were set to join regional leaders for the ceremony, including the presidents of Sudan and Ethiopia.
It was not clear how long Machar would remain in Juba following the peace ceremony as his helpers are worried about his safety in the city.
A previously scheduled return to Juba for Machar has been postponed after disagreements over the number of bodyguards who could lead and what weapons they could carry, AFP news agency reported.
South Sudan has become the world's second largest nation in the world.
South Sudan was then beset by civil war in 2013, after Kiir accused Machar of plotting a shot. Troops loyal to Kiir clashed with forces loyal to Machar in Juba, and the fighting eventually spreading, causing oil production to shut down, forcing millions to flee and killing an estimated 380,000.
The power-sharing agreement between Kiir and Machar will be the third time that the two rivals have been working together since the outbreak of war six years ago.
Read more: South Sudan's youth collect trash to protest civil war
cmb / sms (AFP, Reuters, AP)
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