South Sudan president fires interior minister in a move threatening peace agreement

JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — South Sudan’s president has fired his interior minister, the wife of a detained opposition leader with whom he led a unity government following a peace deal that ended a five-year civil war.

President Salva Kiir on Monday evening dismissed Interior Minister Angelina Teny, a senior opposition figure and the wife of detained first vice president Riek Machar. No reason was given for the dismissal.

Kiir replaced her with Aleu Ayieny Aleu, a veteran loyalist who served as interior minister from 2013 to 2015.

The move further weakens the 2018 peace deal, which handed the interior ministry to the opposition in a power-sharing deal.

The opposition has accused Kiir of undermining the power-sharing framework.

Machar, a former rebel leader who joined the unity government in 2020 following the peace deal, remains in detention with several associates and faces treason charges linked to the violence in Nasir, Upper Nile state.

Forces loyal to Machar, alongside allied White Army fighters, have made progress against government forces in Jonglei State. They recently captured Pajut, a strategic town in Duk County on the main road to Bor, the state capital, reinforcing fears of a broader offensive. The government deployed reinforcements to try to secure Bor.

Clashes have also erupted in recent weeks in Unity, Upper Nile and parts of Central and Eastern Equatoria states, alarming regional and international observers who warn of wider escalation and the collapse of fragile security arrangements. Key provisions of the 2018 peace deal – including security sector reforms and unification of forces – remain unimplemented.

Teny had led the ministry since a reshuffle in March 2023, when Kiir transferred her from the defense portfolio and took control of the defense ministry himself.

She has been largely absent from the Interior Ministry since March 2025, when Machar was placed under house arrest. In June 2025, security agents reportedly confiscated his phone, laptop and a modem.

Pal Mai Deng, an opposition spokesperson, on Tuesday called Teny’s dismissal a “clear sign of desperation” and said it reflected a government that was “collapsed under pressure” as the security situation deteriorated.