{"id":91687,"date":"2026-04-09T12:04:25","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T12:04:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns"},"modified":"2026-04-09T12:17:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T12:17:01","slug":"akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns","title":{"rendered":"Akobo FM remains off air over security concerns"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Sudan. <\/strong><\/span>A community radio station in Jonglei state\u2019s Akobo County has been off air since March 8, 2026, citing security concerns following the takeover of the area by the South Sudan People\u2019s Defence Forces (SSPDF).<\/p>\n

The station is operated by the Community Peace Radio Organization (CPRO), a local non-governmental group established in 2017 by youth in the area.<\/p>\n

Sam Koang, manager of Akobo 98.5 FM, told Radio Tamazuj on Wednesday that staff had fled across the border into Ethiopia and evacuated studio equipment, fearing for their safety.<\/p>\n

He said the team faced intimidation, including threats of arrest and withdrawal of the station\u2019s operating license, after refusing orders from County Commissioner James Kueth Makuach to resume broadcasting.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the SSPDF evacuation order, we moved from Akobo town to Tiergol on the Ethiopian side of the border,\u201d Koang said. \u201cBy March 8, civilians, including us, had left the town. We also took some equipment to a UNMISS facility for protection.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koang said the station\u2019s management still considers it unsafe to resume operations and reported that some equipment left behind was looted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe equipment we could not carry was looted. I also received direct threats from the commissioner after refusing to reopen the station to air what we believe is propaganda,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have also been accused of hindering the return of civilians to the town. The commissioner warned that our license could be withdrawn for refusing to resume operations.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Akobo County commissioner was not immediately available for comment.<\/p>\n

Jonglei State Information Minister Nyamar Lony Thichiot dismissed the concerns, saying the security situation in Akobo had improved.<\/p>\n

\u201cCivilians have returned to Akobo in large numbers, the market is operating, and NGOs are returning,\u201d she said. \u201cOur governor, Dr. Riek, has been there for the past two weeks, which shows the town is safe. No official complaint from Akobo FM has been brought to my attention.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thichiot said she was in Juba to meet national officials to seek support for restoring telecommunications services in Akobo, where infrastructure was damaged during recent fighting.<\/p>\n

\u201cNetwork equipment, including solar systems and generators, was either destroyed or looted by retreating SPLA-IO forces,\u201d she said. \u201cWe will also discuss support for local radio stations in the state.\u201d<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Sudan<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Sudan. A community radio station in Jonglei state\u2019s Akobo County has been off air since March 8, 2026, citing security concerns following the takeover of the area by the South Sudan People\u2019s Defence Forces (SSPDF). The station is operated by the Community Peace Radio Organization (CPRO), a local non-governmental group established in 2017 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":91686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,12],"tags":[233],"class_list":["post-91687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","category-policy","tag-south-sudan"],"yoast_head":"\nAkobo FM remains off air over security concerns - South Sudan<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A community radio station in Jonglei state\u2019s Akobo County has been off air since March 8, 2026, citing security concerns ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Akobo FM remains off air over security concerns\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A community radio station in Jonglei state\u2019s Akobo County has been off air since March 8, 2026, citing security concerns ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Sudan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-09T12:04:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-09T12:17:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2026\/04\/sm_1775724342.986907.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"729\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"354\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Akobo FM remains off air over security concerns\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-09T12:04:25+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-09T12:17:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns\"},\"wordCount\":388,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2026\/04\/sm_1775724342.986907.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"South-Sudan\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"community\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/akobo-fm-remains-off-air-over-security-concerns\",\"name\":\"Akobo FM remains off air over security concerns - 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