South Sudan: Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?

[Masterhawk]

Since the country fell into war back in December 2013, there have been many ceasefire attempts which were rather shortlived and did nothing to fix the situation. But how did this all start? How did a people which fought so hard to break away from the islamist government of Sudan fall into dissaray after only 8 years (the war ended in 2005 with SS being an autonomous region)? There are many ethinic groups in south sudan but the 2 largest in that order are the dinka and the nuer. These 2 groups had a great rivalry which dates back to when sudan was a colony. The dinka worked with the brits while the nuer resisted them. There were cattle disputes even before south sudan became a nation but the straw which broke the camel's back came when the president's dinka bodyguards thought the nuer bodyguards were planning to assassinate him. After the incident, the dinka president exiled his nuer vice president. In the aftermath formed the nuer white army as the president cracked down on nuer opposition. The former vice president, now rebel leader and the nuer white army called for the resignation of dinka president who has a strange obsession with cowboy hats. Both sides have faced intense scrutiny from the UN due to reports of village massacres. This country is unique in that it has gotten the attention of the US, something a subsaharan african country rarely gets.

In late march of 2016, it seems that the UN has finally worked out a peace deal. The nuer rebel leader has moved back into Juba, the capital and largest city along with a few rebels. The UN achieved this by promising funding and threatening with sanctions: South Sudan finally has a new government—now it wants the money it was promised — Quartz
You can see a map of the conflict from wikipedia here:

 

[Masterhawk]

Peace in south sudan is facing a few obstacles such as distrust of rebels in the upper nile region
South Sudan army rejects presence of SPLA-IO forces outside Upper Nile - Sudan Tribune: Plural news and views on Sudan

 

[Infinite Chaos]

~ dinka president who has a strange obsession with cowboy hats ~

South Sudan borders Uganda where there is a HUGE following for US country music.

It's not out of bounds that there are links between Uganda and any insurgency or turmoil in the region. Rebels from either side will find home in neighbouring countries and there is often a link or support against a particular leader.