Malakal

Malakal is a city in South Sudan, serving as the capital of Upper Nile State, South Sudan, along the White Nile River. It also serves as the headquarter of Malakal county and it used to be the headquarter of Upper Nile Region from 1970s to late 1990s. The city of Malakal is located along the White Nile, in upper Nile state, South Sudan, close to the International borders with the Republic of Sudan and with Ethiopia. The town is located on the banks of the White Nile, just north of its confluence with the Sobat River. This location lies approximately , by road, directly north of Juba, the capital of South Sudan and the largest city in that county. Historically, Malakal was known as the former Sobat District. The Malakal town started as a tiny District administrative unit which later expanded into a big town becoming the capital city of the Upper Nile State (since 2020). It was also the capital of the defunct Eastern Nile State and Central Upper Nile State During the Second Sudanese Civil War, the town was a garrison town of the Khartoum-based Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). Following South Sudan's independence on 9 July 2011, the troops from the Republic of Sudan have retreated from Malakal. Malakal was the site of the November 2006 Battle of Malakal. Beginning in 2013, Malakal has been the site of numerous battles between government SPLA forces and the Nuer White Army, loosely commanded by the SPLM-IO which is headed by Riek Machar. The city has been overrun on various occasions by both sides. As of October 2015, Malakal had exchanged hands twelve times during the civil war, and was utterly destroyed in the process. Beginning in 2013, Malakal has been the site of numerous battles between government SPLA forces and the Nuer White Army, loosely commanded by the SPLM-IO which is headed by Riek Machar. The city has been overrun on various occasions by both sides. As of October 2015, Malakal had exchanged hands twelve times during the civil war, and was utterly destroyed in the process.