Tiger Faction New Forces | |
---|---|
Leaders | Maj. Gen. Yoanis Okiech †[1][2] |
Spokesperson | Brig. Gen. Otowang Achwang[1] |
Dates of operation | 29 October 2015[3] – January 2017 |
Split from | Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) |
Allegiance | Shilluk Kingdom[4] |
Headquarters | Hamra, near Kodok in Western Upper Nile[5] |
Active regions | Northeastern South Sudan |
Ideology | Shilluk tribalism[6] Pro-South Sudanese federalism[6] |
Part of | National Democratic Movement[2] (from 2016) |
Allies | SPLM/A-IO (until 2016) |
Opponents | South Sudanese government SPLM/A-IO (from 2016) |
The Tiger Faction New Forces (short: TFNF, also called Tiger Faction or The Tigers)[1] was a Shilluk militia that took part in the South Sudanese Civil War with the aim of reversing the division of South Sudan into 28 (later 32) states in order to restore the territory of the Shilluk Kingdom per its 1956 borders.[1] Led by Yoanis Okiech, the TFNF originally split from the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in late October 2015 and subsequently started an insurgency against the SPLM government. In course of 2016, however, it also came into conflict with SPLM-IO rebels, leading to inter-rebel fighting which resulted in Okiech's death and the group's destruction in January 2017.