VP Machar allegedly arrested as UN calls for ceasefire in South Sudan

South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan. [AP]

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and urgent dialogue among the country's leaders to ease tensions and restore calm.

The appeal follows reports of escalating violence involving the South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF) and the Sudan People's Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO).