South Sudan Faces First Major Test of Unity Since Independence

Over the past few weeks, South Sudan has faced the biggest test yet since it declared independence from the north last summer. Just months after this oil-rich, ethnically diverse nation celebrated its secession from an often-oppressive Khartoum government, large-scale violence has broken out between rival ethnic groups. In Jonglei, the largest state in South Sudan, several tit-for-tat attacks have left 60,000 people in need of help. The attacks have taken place been between the Murle and Lou Nuer tribes and have been sparked by cattle rustling. No reliable death toll has been released for all the attacks, but the New York Times reported that as many as 3,000 men, women, and children were killed in just one recent attack in the town of Pibor.