Reports of renewed fighting in South Sudan have emerged just days after President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar put pen to paper on a ceasefire agreement to end the civil war.

An army spokesman is reported to say that at least 15 people were killed in the latest clashes.

Bloomberg reports army spokesman Lul Ruai Koang to have said by phone from the capital, Juba, that rebels attacked government positions in Southern Liech and Northern Liech States in the Greater Upper Nile region between 2AM and 5AM Saturday.

A separate early morning attack at a cattle camp in Maban in Northern Upper Nile resulted in 15 civilians being killed while 22 others were wounded and livestock stolen, Koang said.

President Kiir issued a decree on 28 June directing the army to abide by the ceasefire from June 30, an order reciprocated by Machar.

South Sudan has been dogged by violence since December 2013, sparked by a feud between Kiir and Machar.

President Kiir accused Machar – his then deputy – of plotting a coup against his government. Machar refuted the claims but then went on to mobilize a rebel force to fight the rpesident’s rule.

The war has killed tens of thousands and forced millions others to flee their homes.

The displacements prompted the UN last year to rank South Sudan as Africa’s biggest refugee crisis, coming third worldwide after Syria and Afghanistan.

-CGTN