The leader of the South Sudanese rebels, currently embroiled in clashes with troops loyal to President Kiir, has said there would need to be negotiations before a truce can be agreed.
Riek Machar, a former vice-president, was sacked after the president accused him of plotting a coup against Kiir. He said his side had a negotiating team ready but that a ceasefire would have to be credible and monitored.
“Until mechanisms for monitoring are established, when one says there is a unilateral ceasefire, there is no way that the other person would be confident that this is a commitment”, he said to the BBC via satellite phone from an undisclosed location.
The government had earlier declared an immediate end to fighting and freed two of 11 detainees, whose release was demanded by Machar.