George Athor

Who was George Athor?

George Athor Deng was the Sudan People's Liberation Army Lieutenant General and a SPLA dissident who led the South Sudan Democratic Movement and its military wing, the South Sudan Army. He was also an independent candidate for the leadership of Jonglei prior to the independence of South Sudan.

Athor joined the SPLA in 1983 and was appointed to the rank of Major General after the SPLA formalised their rank structures after 2005. Athor became Upper Nile then Jonglei division commander. He was later promoted to Lieutenant General and made Deputy Chief of Staff for Political and Moral Orientation. Numerous rumors are accusing him to be involved into weapons smuggling, traffic of influence and misappropriation of funds both in Jonglei and Upper Nile. He was also deeply involved in the White Army bloody disarmament in 2006. After the April 2010 elections, after suspicions of fraud in the process, Athor orchestrated a series of attacks on SPLA bases. Further attacks lead to great insecurity in the north-western portion of Jonglei state.