{"id":1033,"date":"2026-10-29T06:49:26","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T06:49:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033"},"modified":"2026-10-29T06:49:27","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T06:49:27","slug":"president-kiir-declares-national-mourning-following-death-of-liberation-hero-joseph-lagu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033","title":{"rendered":"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Late General Joseph Lagu Yanga,(file photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Jenifer James<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Salva Kiir Mayardit has declared national mourning following the death of General Joseph Lagu Yanga, a veteran liberation hero, military commander, diplomat and statesman who led the Anyanya movement during Sudan\u2019s first civil war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lagu died in Juba on Tuesday, according to a statement issued by the President.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a statement seen by The Dawn Newspaper, Kiir expressed profound sorrow over the death of the veteran leader, describing him as a towering nationalist who dedicated his life to South Sudan\u2019s struggle for freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is with profound sorrow and deep shock that I announce the peaceful passing of His Excellency, General Joseph Lagu Yanga, which occurred this afternoon in Juba,\u201d Kiir said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President said Lagu\u2019s contribution to the liberation struggle and his service in military, diplomatic and political roles had placed him among the most historic figures in South Sudan\u2019s history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In honour of Lagu\u2019s service to the nation, Kiir directed that all national flags across South Sudan and at the country\u2019s diplomatic missions abroad be flown at half-mast until the late general is laid to rest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President also announced that he would personally bid farewell to the late leader in recognition of his life and legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI will personally bid him a state farewell to honor his life and legacy,\u201d Kiir said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He urged South Sudanese to mourn the death of the veteran leader while also celebrating his life and contribution to the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs his family and the nation mourn his passing, I urge the public to also celebrate his life because he lived to see the birth of the country he fought for,\u201d the President said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kiir called on citizens to unite in prayer for the bereaved family and support one another during the period of national mourning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn this moment of deep national grief, let us unite in prayer for his family and comfort one another as a grateful nation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a tribute statement issued on Wednesday, SPLM First Deputy Chairperson James Wani Igga said Lagu\u2019s contribution to the liberation struggle had inspired the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in its fight for freedom, which eventually led to South Sudan\u2019s independence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday, we gather here, with heavy hearts, to bid farewell to a giant of our history, General Joseph Lagu Yanga,\u201d Igga said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He described the late general as \u201can extremely outstanding military commander, a statesman of the first degree, a former Vice President of Sudan of the highest order, and a pioneering leader and tower of the Anyanya liberation movement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Igga said Lagu\u2019s difficult struggle had helped pave the way for the SPLM\u2019s liberation movement, which he described as a painful but ultimately victorious journey towards independence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYanga\u2019s difficult struggle was no doubt the eye-opener and a historical inspirer of the SPLM\u2019s agonising but victorious freedom movement, that, alas, captured the long-awaited independence,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this week, Lagu\u2019s family reportedly announced online that the veteran general was unwell and appealed to well-wishers, friends and members of the public to remember him in their prayers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The family asked God to grant him healing, strength and a speedy recovery during that difficult time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

General Joseph Lagu Yanga led the Anyanya resistance movement during the first Sudanese civil war. In 1972, he signed the Addis Ababa Agreement with Sudanese President Gaafar Nimeiry, ending the war and granting southern Sudan regional autonomy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lagu is remembered for his role in the Anyanya movement, which fought for the rights and self-determination of the people of southern Sudan before the country gained independence in 2011.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Salva Kiir Mayardit has declared national mourning following the death of General Joseph Lagu Yanga, a veteran liberation hero, military commander, diplomat and statesman who led the Anyanya movement during Sudan\u2019s first civil war. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1034,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_tdlc_coverage_id":0,"_tdlc_timeline_at":"","_tdlc_timeline_label":"","_tdno_assigned_editor":1,"_tdno_approval_notes":"","_thedawn_video_url":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,49],"tags":[38],"class_list":["post-1033","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","category-news","tag-following"],"yoast_head":"\nPresident Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu - The Dawn Newspaper<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu - The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"President Salva Kiir Mayardit has declared national mourning following the death of General Joseph Lagu Yanga, a veteran liberation hero, military commander, diplomat and statesman who led the Anyanya movement during Sudan\u2019s first civil war.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-10-29T06:49:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-29T06:49:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-113.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"624\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"462\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"The Dawn Newspaper\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309\"},\"headline\":\"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-29T06:49:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-29T06:49:27+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033\"},\"wordCount\":623,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-113.png\",\"keywords\":[\"following\"],\"articleSection\":[\"National\",\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033\",\"name\":\"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu - The Dawn Newspaper\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-113.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-29T06:49:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-29T06:49:27+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-113.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/image-113.png\",\"width\":624,\"height\":462},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?p=1033#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"description\":\"Welcome to The Dawn Newspaper\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"The Dawn\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg\",\"width\":308,\"height\":314,\"caption\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309\",\"name\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"The Dawn Newspaper\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/Thedawn.com.ss\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedawn.com.ss\\\/?author=3\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu - The Dawn Newspaper","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu - The Dawn Newspaper","og_description":"President Salva Kiir Mayardit has declared national mourning following the death of General Joseph Lagu Yanga, a veteran liberation hero, military commander, diplomat and statesman who led the Anyanya movement during Sudan\u2019s first civil war.","og_url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033","og_site_name":"The Dawn Newspaper","article_published_time":"2026-10-29T06:49:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-29T06:49:27+00:00","og_image":[{"width":624,"height":462,"url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-113.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"The Dawn Newspaper","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"The Dawn Newspaper","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033"},"author":{"name":"The Dawn Newspaper","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/person\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309"},"headline":"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu","datePublished":"2026-10-29T06:49:26+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-29T06:49:27+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033"},"wordCount":623,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-113.png","keywords":["following"],"articleSection":["National","News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033","name":"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu - The Dawn Newspaper","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-113.png","datePublished":"2026-10-29T06:49:26+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-29T06:49:27+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-113.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/image-113.png","width":624,"height":462},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?p=1033#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"President Kiir Declares National Mourning Following Death of Liberation Hero Joseph Lagu"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#website","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/","name":"The Dawn Newspaper","description":"Welcome to The Dawn Newspaper","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#organization"},"alternateName":"The Dawn","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#organization","name":"The Dawn Newspaper","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/LOG0-Dawn.jpg","width":308,"height":314,"caption":"The Dawn Newspaper"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/#\/schema\/person\/96167766e6227ace98d717e62c175309","name":"The Dawn Newspaper","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c731125de7491b8fb6783c99e1ec3b183f0e5bb12f00fd292433c1329e4b3e8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"The Dawn Newspaper"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/Thedawn.com.ss"],"url":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/?author=3"}]}},"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1033","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1033"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1033\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1035,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1033\/revisions\/1035"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1034"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1033"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1033"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawn.com.ss\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1033"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}