South Sudan police investigate fatal strangulation of two minors in Northern Bahr El Ghazal
AWEIL — A 21-year-old woman in Aweil, Northern Bahr El Ghazal state, was arrested on Saturday after allegedly strangling her two young children to death following a domestic dispute with her husband, police said.
According to state authorities, the suspect squeezed the throats of her two minors—aged three years and one year—inside their home in the New Site neighborhood before attempting to take her own life as neighbors went about their evening routines.
Northern Bahr El Ghazal state police spokesperson Madut Ngong Aleu told Sudans Post that both children died immediately at the scene from the assault.
“The woman identified as Akon Lual Ayii in her mid-20s from New Site neighborhood in Aweil Town happened to have allegedly killed her two babies after having had a dispute with her husband at home.” He said.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the domestic tension stemmed from the previous death of the couple’s first-born daughter in their ancestral home.
The husband reportedly accused the woman of secretly taking a traditional oath to force a divorce, which he blamed for the eldest child’s death in the distant village.
The suspect, originally from Warrap State, and her husband, from Aweil South County, had previously faced marital negotiations and friction between their respective families regarding the union.
“According to the preliminary report that we are getting, the woman says that she has been receiving a lot of abusive statements from her husband that she had contributed to the death of her first born daughter who died recently back in the village and wasn’t told to her, and instead her husband kept nagging her of having contributed to her death through a wrong decision she took to divorce the man, which might have contributed to the death of the first born, which angerd her to kill the other two” he stated.
Police intervention prevented the suspect from completing her suicide attempt. She remains in custody awaiting formal charges and her upcoming court appearance.
In light of the incident, police spokesperson Aleu appealed to community members to refrain from verbal abuse and escalation during domestic disagreements.
“Human rights are inalienable right, and you can’t keep on abusing somebody , this results in making one take such decisions, as this is more uncultured to kill a human being, people need to stop abusing themselves at home instead of getting better redress to their family issues in an amicable way” he noted.
The tragedy underscores broader societal challenges in South Sudan, where rural populations face high levels of psychological distress alongside a critical shortage of professional mental health counselors.
Gender-based violence experts continue to urge families to utilize community mediation and constructive dialogue rather than resorting to violence during domestic conflicts.