Terrorist Organization Profile:
Southern Sudan Independence Movement (SSIM)

Originally called the SPLM/A-United, the SSIM was created by Dr. Riak Machar in August 1991 when it split from John Garang's mainly ethnic-Dinka Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) over philosophical differences. As their names would suggest, the SPLA envisioned a unified and democratic Sudan as their goal, whereas the SSIM faction was willing to secede from Sudan if the government would not meet their demands for equal treatment. Ironically, it was the SSIM that would merge with government forces in April 1996, when Khartoum and six rebel groups from the south, including the SSIM, signed a peace agreement. In April 1997, the agreement was formalized in the Sudan Peace Agreement, which created the United Democratic Salvation Front (UDSF), a political body that served to merge elements of the militant groups into the government and internal security forces of the state. The military wing of this body, used to patrol Southern Sudan on behalf of the government, was called the Southern Sudan Defense Forces (SSDF) and was led by Machar. In August 1997, the Khartoum government appointed Machar to the Presidency of the Coordinating Council of the Southern States and Assistant of the President of the Republic, a cabinet-level position.

Learn more about these U.S. Department of State classifications:

Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs)

Terrorist Exclusion List (TEL)