By Manas James Okony
Born around 1938 in Akobo in Jonglei state, Gen. Stephen Ogut, a prominent figure in the struggle for South Sudan’s independence has breathed his last.
Gen. Stephen Ogut passed away on Thursday, May 8, 2025, at Juba’s Nile King Hospital.
Ogut, a son of a herdsman, spent his early years honing hunting skills and tending to cattle.
However, his path took a different direction when he enrolled at a Christian missionary school in Akobo District (now Akobo County, Jonglei State) in 1948. It is noteworthy that formal education was initially frowned upon by his village elders.
Seeking solutions for his educational challenges, he secretly traveled to Obeel, a riverine village located on the southern outskirts of Malakal. There, he enrolled in a public school to pursue his elementary and intermediate education between 1950 and 1955. Additionally, while in Obeel, Ogut joined a student campaign group advocating for a secular Sudan, coinciding with the country’s independence from British rule on January 1, 1956.
Unfortunately, the southern Sudanese students did not welcome independence with open arms, as the Khartoum government responded by shutting down schools in the South due to intensified student protests following the 1955 Torit mutiny. This development deeply affected Ogut, who missed out on the intermediate leaving examination scheduled for 1956. Like many other students, he was repatriated to his hometown of Akobo, where he made a life-defining decision – to join the armed resistance.
General Stephen Ogut’s choice to take up arms would shape the course of his life and establish him as a prominent figure in the fight for freedom and independence in South Sudan.
Joining the Anya Nya
The years leading up to Sudan’s independence in 1956 were tumultuous for young Ogut and students in the southern region of the country. Student protests and guerrilla warfare, triggered by the Torit mutiny of 1955, ravaged villages in Bahr el Ghazal and Upper Nile provinces. The Government of Sudan (GoS), perceiving the sympathy shown to the mutineers as a potential threat, responded by implementing a widespread shutdown of schools across the South.
Even in Upper Nile, Obeel, an elementary and intermediate school, was not spared. Students were forced to abandon their studies, including Ogut and his companions, who then returned to Akobo where they would later join the Anya Nya guerrilla movement.
The Torit mutiny of August 18, 1955, marked a significant turning point that led to the secession of South Sudan as an independent country on July 9, 2011. It is important to note that resistance against foreign domination had begun long before the mutiny, the most impactful event in the history of the world’s newest nation. The mutiny paved the way for the formation of the Anya Nya guerrilla movement, known by various names such as Jeydor (Nuer), Kuloyam, Jo Keem, and Nyigat in Upper Nile, before the locals became aware of the name Anya Nya.
The post-independence Sudan witnessed continued unrest after 1956. Protests and guerrilla warfare became commonplace in major towns of the South, as opposition to the Khartoum regime gained momentum among Southerners from all walks of life, particularly politicians and students. Consequently, many believed that an armed uprising would be the best option to achieve justice in Sudan.
In 1957, the province of Upper Nile became a turning point in the quest for freedom. Local elites formed an all-out military outfit in the border town of Akobo called the Anyanya Upper Nile Command. Paul Ruot (a Nuer), Paul Adung (a Collo), Paul Awel (a Dinka), and Paul Nyingori Ojulu (an Anyuak) were instrumental in pioneering this insurrection.
Led by one of the Pauls—Nyingori, the movement established itself as an effective fighting machine by the early 1960s.
From 1957 to 1963, the movement focused on reorganizing and mobilizing support, carrying out frequent guerrilla attacks on soft military targets. One notable attack led by Nyingori and in which Ogut participated involved seizing three semiautomatic rifles from police officers deployed on a farm in Pochalla Town, 1n 1962. This successful incident strengthened support for the war effort.
Stephen Ogut Obongo played a crucial role as a commander responsible for mobilizing resources and recruiting necessary personnel for the military outfit between 1957 and 1963.
In September 1963, the freedom fighters launched an attack on a military outpost in the strategically important border town of Pochalla. The attack followed a week-long siege, during which the freedom fighters blocked access to water supply points. The attacking force were led by Ruot, Adung, Awel, and Nyingori. General Ogut was among these commanders who participated in the 1963 liberation of the Pochalla border town.
After the Pochalla attack, the four leaders, namely Paul Awel, Paul Adung, Ruot, and Nyingori, decided to separate in order to expand the rebellion.
Gen. Ogut remained as a commander taking charge of logistic, mobilization, and training at Akobo’s Aparawanga, the general headquarters of Anyanya Upper Nile Command.
Reorganizing the Anya Nya
One problem with the Anyanya-I movement was the lack of coordination among commanders. This lack of central command for Anyanya forces in Bahr el Ghazal, Equatoria, and Upper Nile was resolved with the support of Israel’s Mossad. Here, Gen. Ogut’s role was effective again.
In 1968, Gen. Nyingori, who had fallen out with Ethiopia, an Anyanya support base, was ousted as the Upper Nile regional commander by Joseph Oteho. Gen. Ogut was a co-leader of the military ouster of his defiant colleague, Nyingori.
He then received further military training in Erirea, between 1968 and 1970.
In 1970-71, he was among those commanders airlifted to Israel for a specialized military training.
In 1972, following the Addis Ababa Agreement which ended the First Sudanese Civil War, Ogut was absorbed as a lieutenant colonel with the Sudan Armed Force (SAF), later rising to the rank of a major-general and becoming a commander of Sudan’s military driving school. In 1996, while deployed in Pochalla to lead SAF’s counter-insurgency operation, General Ogut defected to the SPLM/A. He was prominent within the ranks of the SPLA until post-Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) where he joined politics.
Summary review
A Remarkable Path of Service and Leadership
1958
Joined the Jo Keem guerrilla movement.
1962/63
Participated in the historic Pochalla attack.
1965
As one of the retreating Anya Nya fighters, played a crucial role in establishing Aparawanga, a military headquarters on the eastern outskirts of Akobo.
1967
Wounded in a fierce battle in king’s palace and received treatment in Gambella, where he reunited with Joseph Oteho, the future leader of the Anya Nya Upper Nile Command (AUC).
1968
Collaborated with Oteho and other Anya Nya officers to plan and execute a successful coup, leading to the overthrow of General Nyingori.
1968–71
Pursued three months of intensive military training in Asmara and later in Israel. Subsequently promoted to the rank of major and appointed as a logistical officer.
1972
Integrated as a lieutenant colonel into the Sudanese Armed Forces and assigned to Battalion 104 in Akobo. Received further military training in Jibet, Eastern Sudan and Omdurman.
1982-83
Promoted to the rank of colonel and entrusted with representing the SAF in the Fourth Regional Assembly in Juba.
1983
Recaptured Pochalla from the SPLA without confrontation, thanks to Gen. Ogut’s diplomatic efforts. He advised King Agada to allow the SPLA to vacate Pochalla to prevent needless bloodshed.
1983–86
Elevated to the rank of brigadier and appointed as the head of the military driving school in Jeli, Khartoum.
1986
Retired from the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF).
1996
Recalled into military service by the Government of Sudan to implement military and civilian counterinsurgency strategies in Pochalla. During his time there, Ogut defected to the SPLA, and Dr. John Garang immediately named him as a commander.
1996–2004
Served in various capacities within the SPLA, including as the second in command to Gen. Mabil Riak and later as Gen. Thomas Cirilo’s deputy in Yei. He also served as Gen. John Koang’s deputy military governor for Jonglei.
2005–2010
Served as a security advisor in the Jonglei State government.
2010–2025
Elected as an MP representing Akobo County in the Jonglei State Legislative Assembly.