At least 14 soldiers were killed and several others injured in South Sudan after a suspected "love triangle" dispute led to a deadly shootout, the army said on Wednesday.

A clash between members of the Unified VIP Protection Force, which comprises government troops and opposition fighters, erupted on Monday at a market near the oil-rich Abyei Box region, which straddles the border between Sudan and South Sudan.

A fragile power-sharing deal between President Salva Kiir and his long-time rival, Riek Machar, has been unravelling for months, threatening to return the young nation to a civil war that left 400,000 dead in the 2010s.

Machar was indicted last month on charges of murder, treason and crimes against humanity, and was stripped of his position as first vice president in the unity

See Full Page