Collapse in the Capital: The Evolution of Security Arrangements in Juba, South Sudan, 2014–16

In July 2016, violence in Juba, South Sudan, caused the collapse of a peace agreement reached only a year earlier and reignited the country’s civil war. Since it was violence in Juba that began the war in 2013, the repeated failure of security arrangements in the city is especially important in understanding the broader relapse into conflict. Yet the mediation, negotiation, and evolution of the security provisions for Juba prior to the incidents of July 2016 is little understood. Based on archival material from the negotiations, this briefing examines the provisions for Juba considered in 2014–16 and addresses the claim that their failure was inevitable.