South Sudan on edge as army hunts coup plotters

“The fighting has been fierce and parts of Juba have been reduced to rubble,” she said.

“Reported casualty figures are well over 500 and we should expect this figure to increase. The conduct of the (Sudanese military) in the coming days will be a good indicator of how South Sudan will come out of this and how ethnic diversity will be managed moving forward.”

The oil-rich East African nation has been plagued by ethnic tension since it broke away from Sudan in 2011.

In the rural Jonglei state, where the government is trying to put down a rebellion, the military itself faces charges of widespread abuses against the Murle ethnic group of rebel leader David Yau Yau.