 "South Sudan's Vice President Benjamin Bol Mel attends the burial of a slain military commander at the Heroes Cemetery within Simba Grounds in Juba, South Sudan on March 19, 2025. Reuters File")
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir on Wednesday dismissed Benjamin Bol Mel from his posts as vice president and deputy leader of the ruling party, according to a Reuters report, citing state television — an unexpected move against a man long rumored to be Kiir’s preferred successor.
According to the South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation, Bol Mel, appointed in February as one of the country’s five vice presidents, was also stripped of his military rank of general.
The broadcaster added that Kiir also dismissed the governor of the central bank and the head of the national revenue authority.
Bol Mel has been under US sanctions since 2017 for alleged corruption.
A United Nations report in September accused companies linked to him of receiving $1.7 billion for road construction projects that were never completed.
Bol Mel has not publicly responded to the allegations.
With inputs from agencies