South Sudanese former vice-president Riek Machar has fled the country to an undisclosed location, his party spokesman said yesterday.

Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) spokesman Mabior Garang de Mabior said the warlord “has now been safely evacuated to a safe country within the region. He will hold a press conference within the next 24 hours.”

Fighting between the two factions of the SPLM broke out in the capital Juba in early July, threatening a return to the 2013-2015 civil war.