Sodan,February 07:A South Sudanese soldier stands guard outside a cultural center in Juba on January 16, 2011 at the end of a week-long vote.
At least 50 people have been killed in clashes in south Sudan as a mutiny in the army spread through towns in the oil-producing Upper Nile state.
The Sudanese military said heavy fighting with tanks and machine guns broke out in Malakal, the Upper Nile’s capital, on Thursday, Reuters reported on Sunday.
The clashes erupted when southerners in northern units refused to redeploy with their weapons to the north of Sudan.
State officials said the battle then spread to the settlements of Melut and Paloich on Friday and Saturday.
“The fighting in Malut yesterday (Saturday) killed 19 and wounded 18 … In Paloich, 11 were killed and eight wounded,” said Akuoc Teng Diing, county commissioner of Melut.
The Joint Integrated Units in Malakal are made up of former southern militiamen and northern troops. The units are to split up before the south secedes from the north.
Southern Sudan is considering building a new capital after its expected secession from the North following a referendum which was held from January 9 to January 15.
The preliminary results showed 98.83 percent of votes cast in southern Sudan supported secession of the autonomous region from Sudan.
–Agencies