A herd of cattle in Lakes State | Credit | File photo

Five cattle traders have been reportedly killed in an attack by suspected raiders over the weekend in Cueibet County, Lakes State.

The traders from Jonglei State had taken their animals for auctioning in Wau town, Western Bahr el Ghazal State, when they fell into an ambush in Mayath Payam.

“One trader sustained gunshots wounds and the attackers made away with 75 heads of cattle, while five others were killed on spot,” said William Aluong Lueth, chairman of the greater Bor association in Wau.

The identities of the deceased have not been revealed.

Aluong urged the state authorities to help in retrieving the animals and apprehend the attackers.

The former commissioner of Cueibet County, Joseph Malok, confirmed the incident, saying efforts were ongoing to recover the stolen cattle.

“The local authorities are trying a lot to collect the few cattle that were taken by the youth,” he stressed.

Cattle raiding is commonly reported in the region. Observers blame it on proliferation of firearms in the hands of civilians.

Several disarmament campaigns have proved futile as collected guns reportedly find their way back into the hands of local youth locally known as Gelweng.