Malakal is a city in South Sudan, serving as the capital of Upper Nile State, South Sudan, along the White Nile River. It also serves as the headquarter of Malakal county and it used to be the headquarter of Upper Nile Region from 1970s to late 1990s.
Geography
The city of Malakal is located along the White Nile,[1] in upper Nile state, South Sudan, close to the International borders with the Republic of Sudan and with Ethiopia.[2] The town is located on the banks of the White Nile, just north of its confluence with the Sobat River.
This location lies approximately 650 kilometres (400 mi), by road, directly north of Juba, the capital of South Sudan and the largest city in that county.[3]
History
Historically, Malakal was known as the former Sobat District. The Malakal town started as a tiny District administrative unit which later expanded into a big town becoming the capital city of the Upper Nile State (since 2020). It was also the capital of the defunct Eastern Nile State and Central Upper Nile State During the Second Sudanese Civil War, the town was a garrison town of the Khartoum-basedSudanese Armed Forces (SAF). Following South Sudan's independence on 9 July 2011, the troops from the Republic of Sudan have retreated from Malakal. Malakal was the site of the November 2006 Battle of Malakal.
Beginning in 2013, Malakal has been the site of numerous battles between government SPLA forces and the Nuer White Army, loosely commanded by the SPLM-IO which is headed by Riek Machar. The city has been overrun on various occasions by both sides.[4] As of October 2015, Malakal had exchanged hands twelve times during the civil war, and was utterly destroyed in the process.[5]
On October 14, 2016, an assault occurred on many government positions in Malakal], leaving 56 Agwelek assailants killed.[6][7]
Like other parts of the Sahel, Malakal has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classificationBSh), with a wet season and a dry season and the temperature being hot year-round. The average annual mean temperature is 28.1 °C (82.6 °F), the average annual high temperature is 34.7 °C (94.5 °F), while the average annual low temperature is 21.5 °C (70.7 °F). The hottest time of year is from February to May, just before the wet season starts. April is the hottest month, having the highest average high at 38.8 °C (101.8 °F) and the highest mean at 31.5 °C (88.7 °F). April also has the highest average low at 24.2 °C (75.6 °F). August has the lowest average high at 30.9 °C (87.6 °F) and the lowest mean at 26.3 °C (79.3 °F). January has the lowest average low at 18.5 °C (65.3 °F).
Malakal receives 731.6 millimetres (28.80 in) of rain over 68.0 precipitation days, with a distinct wet and dry season like all of South Sudan. December and January receive no precipitation at all, and almost no rain falls from November to March. August, the wettest month, receives 163.4 millimetres (6.43 in) of rainfall on average. August also has 14.9 precipitation days, which is the most of any month. Humidity is much higher in the wet season than the dry season, with February having a humidity at just 25% and August having a humidity at 80%. Malakal receives 2778.7 hours of sunshine annually on average, with the sunshine being distributed fairly evenly across the year, although it is lower during the wet season. December receives the most sunshine, while July receives the least.
Malakal has very limited newspapers circulated in hardcopy form. However, the Juba-based 'Citizen' is widely read around the town. In the eve of Independence day on July 9, 2011, The Upper Nile Times online newspaper was launched. The website for this online digital newspaper is no longer active.
Population
As of 2005[update] the population of Malakal was estimated at 129,620.[11] The 2008 Sudanese census, which was boycotted by the South Sudanese government, recorded a population of about 126,500.[12] However, those results are disputed by the authorities in Juba. In 2010, it was estimated that the population of Malakal had grown to about 139,450.[13] Below is a table depicting the estimated population of the city from 1983 until 2010 from all sources:
South Sudan
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