FOLLOWERS of ousted South Sudanese vice-president Riek Machar have released 16 United Nations refugee camp staff they took hostage in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The UN in New York said on Tuesday night that the camp was “quiet and under full control” of peacekeepers at the Munigi base in the DRC’s North Kivu province.

“All staff have returned safely to their homes,” it said. “No casualties have been reported. The mission is investigating the incident.”