Gatluak Gai (died 23 July 2011) was a member of the

Sudan People's Liberation Army The South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF), formerly the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), is the army of the South Sudan, Republic of South Sudan. The SPLA was founded as a guerrilla movement against the government of Sudan in 198 ...

(SPLA) who rebelled after the April 2010 elections and led a renegade militia in the volatile

Unity state Unity State, also known as Western Upper Nile, is a state in South Sudan. Unity state is in the Greater Upper Nile region. Unity is inhabited predominantly by two ethnic groups: the Nuer majority, and the Dinka minority. In 2015, a presidentia ...

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...

. Gatluak was of Nuer origin, from

Koch County Koch County is an administrative division of Unity State, South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by ...

. He was a relatively junior SPLA officer on the payroll of the Unity state prisons department. He was said to have wanted to become the Koch county commissioner, but lost this opportunity when

Taban Deng Gai Taban Deng Gai is a South Sudanese politician who has been one of the Vice Presidents of South Sudan in the unity government since February 2020. He served as the First Vice President of South Sudan from 23 July 2016 to February 2020. He was min ...

was appointed governor of Unity state in 2008. In the April 2010 general elections, Taban Deng Gai successfully defended his governorship against challenger

Angelina Teny Angelina Jany Teny was born in 1953 in what is today Unity State, South Sudan. She is a South Sudanese politician who was a state minister of Energy and Mining in the Khartoum-based Government of National Unity between 2005 and 2010. She ran for el ...

, wife of South Sudan vice president

Riek Machar Dr. Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon (born 26 November 1952) is a South Sudanese politician who serves as the First Vice President of South Sudan. Political life In February 2020, Machar was re-sworn in as first vice president following a revitalised ...

. Gatluak Gai did not accept the election results, which were widely seen as flawed. Although Angelina Teny disputed the election results, she disclaimed any connection with Gatluak Gai's rebellion. In late May 2010, Gatluak Gai's forces attacked an SPLA base at Awarping in

Abiemnom County Abiemnom County (or Biemnom) is an administrative area in the extreme northwest of Ruweng Administrative Area, South Sudan. It borders Southern Kordofan in Sudan to the north. The main ethnic group are the Ruweng Dinka. The headquarters of the co ...

. It was suspected that Gatluak Gai led the forces responsible for attacks that killed over 35 people, including many civilians, in

. Gai was residing in

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...

at this time. There were conflicting rumors about the sources of Gai's forces and arms. As of January 2011 talks were in progress with different people who claimed to represent Gai, but the situation was extremely obscure. Gai signed a peace agreement with the SPLA on 20 July 2011. He would have rejoined the SPLA as a lieutenant general. Three days later he was shot to death in Koch county. At first the SPLA was blamed for the death. However, on 24 July, Marko Chuol Ruei, second in command of the rebel

South Sudan Liberation Army The South Sudan Liberation Movement (SSLM) is an armed group that operates in the Greater Upper Nile (region), Upper Nile Region of South Sudan. The group's creation was announced in November 1999 by people of the Nuer people, Nuer ethnicity who ...

(SSLA), said he had killed Gai. Ruei claimed that Gai had told his forces to ignore the peace agreement, to not join the SPLA but instead to join forces from North Sudan. Ruei said the SSLA had been negotiating with Khartoum for supply of munitions, but had been told they would first have to join the rebel militias led by

Peter Gadet Peter Gatdet Yak (1958 – 15 April 2019) or Peter Gadet was a Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) general who became the leader of the South Sudan Liberation Army (SSLA), a rebel movement in South Sudan. Early life He was born between 1957 and ...

and Bapiny Monytuel. At the time of his death, Gatluak Gai was in his 50s. He had an imposing, physical presence. Another rebel leader, General

, was married to one of Gai's daughters.

References

{{reflist , refs= {{cite web , url=http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/pdfs/facts-figures/armed-groups/southern-sudan/emerging/HSBA-Armed-Groups-Gai.pdf , title=Gatluak Gai’s Rebellion, Unity State , work=Small Arms Survey , date=July 2011 , archiveurl=http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/fileadmin/docs/facts-figures/south-sudan/armed-groups/southern-dissident-militias/HSBA-Armed-Groups-Gai.pdf , archivedate=28 July 2011 , accessdate=2011-09-12 {{cite web , url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201107261121.html , title=Militia Deputy Admits Killing of His Leader Gutluak , work=Sudan Tribune , author=Bonifacio Taban Kuich , date=25 July 2011 , accessdate=12 September 2011 2011 deaths Sudan People's Liberation Movement People from Unity (state) Year of birth missing