JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — Gunmen killed more than 70 people in South Sudan over a gold mining row on the outskirts of the capital over the weekend, a police spokesperson confirmed on Monday.
A video of dozens of bodies lying on open ground was shared online, and a local journalist said many other victims are believed to have fled to the bushes.
The gold mining site at Jebel Iraq in Central Equatoria State has in the past been the site of violent clashes involving illegal miners. Gold mining in South Sudan is largely unregulated, with state governments operating their own sectors independently of national authorities.
Police spokesperson Kwacijwok Dominic Amondoc said he would share more information about the attack once he gets more details.
“All I know is that unknown gunmen attacked Jebel Iraq at a gold mine. There are more than 70 dead and many more injured,” he said.
The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army – In Opposition, or SPLM/A-IO, condemned the attack on Monday and blamed government forces, known as the SSPDF.
“Jebel Iraq lies within a zone that is entirely under the exclusive control of the SSPDF. Consequently, full responsibility for the massacre rests with the SSPDF forces that control the area,” a statement from the opposition said.
The army spokesperson told the AP he couldn’t comment on the incident.
A local civil rights group, the Nile Institute for the Study of Human Rights and Transitional Justice, condemned the attack and called for “effective governance and oversight in resource-rich areas.”
“This horrific act represents a grave violation of the fundamental right to life and highlights the continued vulnerability of civilians in areas affected by a weak security presence and unregulated resource exploitation,” the group wrote in a statement.
Human rights activist Edmund Yakani urged the authorities to address the emerging trend of communities competing for natural resources.
“My appeal is to the government to intervene and stop this culture of illegal gold mining across the country,” he said.
In this image made from video, dead bodies are seen covered on the ground, after gunmen killed more than 70 people in South Sudan over a gold mining row on the outskirts of the capital, in Jebel Iraq, South Sudan, Sunday, March 29, 2026. (Aweil News Agency via AP)
In this image made from video, dead bodies are seen covered on the ground, after gunmen killed more than 70 people in South Sudan over a gold mining row on the outskirts of the capital, in Jebel Iraq, South Sudan, Sunday, March 29, 2026. (Aweil News Agency via AP)
In this image made from video, dead bodies are seen covered on the ground, after gunmen killed more than 70 people in South Sudan over a gold mining row on the outskirts of the capital, in Jebel Iraq, South Sudan, Sunday, March 29, 2026. (Aweil News Agency via AP)
Wall Street was poised to open the week with gains on Monday as oil prices continued their climb and prospects for an end to the Iran war remained uncertain.
Futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq all climbed 0.6% before the opening bell. Wall Street closed on Friday with its fifth straight losing week, its longest such streak in nearly four years.
Benchmark U.S. crude jumped $1.20 to $100.84 a barrel. Futures for Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 2.1% to $107.54 a barrel. Before the war, Brent had been priced at about $70 a barrel.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday threatened widespread destruction of Iran’s energy resources and other vital infrastructure if a deal to end the war with Tehran is not reached soon.
In a social media post, Trump said “great progress is being made” in talks with Iran to end military operations but bristled that if a deal is not reached and if the strategic Hormuz Strait is not immediately reopened, the U.S. would broaden its offensive by “completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!).”
About one-fifth of the world's oil passes through the Hormuz Strait.
On the ground, the war showed no sign of letting up: Tehran struck a key water and electrical plant in Kuwait, and an oil refinery in Israel came under attack. Israel and the U.S. launched a new wave of strikes on Iran.
There was little corporate news to trade on early Monday, though shares of Sysco tumbled 5.7% after the nation’s largest food distributor said it would acquire supplier Restaurant Depot in a deal worth more than $29 billion.
The acquisition would create a closer link between Sysco and customers that rely on Restaurant Depot for supplies needed quickly in an industry segment known as “cash-and-carry wholesale.”
Restaurant Depot shareholders will receive $21.6 billion in cash and 91.5 million Sysco shares.
Markets in Asia closed broadly lower Monday as worries continued about soaring oil prices and the potential for further escalation in war with Iran, but shares rose moderately in Europe.
France's CAC 40 rose 0.4% at midday, while Germany's DAX added 0.3%. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.9%.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 2.8% to finish at 51,885.85. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.7% to 8,461.00. South Korea's Kospi dove 3.0% to 5,277.30. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.8% to 24,750.79, while the Shanghai Composite reversed course in the afternoon and was up 0.2% at 3,923.29.
In Japan and the rest of Asia worries continue to grow about the effective lack of access to the Strait of Hormuz as the region relies greatly on such access for oil shipments.
Investors are now bracing for the war to last for some time, which would likely set off inflation in global markets, and eventually may stunt Asia's economic growth.
“Although we do not expect the conflict to be protracted, we anticipate heightened volatility in the near term,” said Xavier Lee, senior equity analyst at Morningstar Research.
Alarm has been resounding in Japan about the declining value of the yen. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched down to 159.51 Japanese yen from 160.32 yen. The euro cost $1.1482, down from $1.1510.
“In addition to the crude oil futures market, speculative activity is also said to be increasing in the foreign exchange market," Vice Finance Minister Atsushi Mimura said.
“As we have already stated, we will respond on all fronts, and our focus is spread in all directions,” he told reporters, without giving specifics on the possible action.
AP journalist Ayaka McGill contributed to this report.
A general view shows the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, March 27, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Workers walk in an area at a degassing station in Zubair oil field, whose operations have being reduced due to the Mideast war triggered by the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran, near Basra, Iraq, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
A person walks by an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index in Tokyo Monday, March 30, 2026. (Yusuke Hashizume/Kyodo News via AP)
A dealer walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Dealers work near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Dealers work near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
