Ethnic fighting kills 56 in South Sudan, official says

FILE PHOTO: Jikany Nuer White Army fighters holds their weapons in Upper Nile State, South Sudan February 10, 2014. South Sudan's rebels said on Tuesday that government soldiers had launched attacks against their positions in oil-rich Unity State in what they said was a violation of a peace deal signed in August. Picture taken February 10, 2014. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic/File Photo

JUBA (Reuters) - Clashes have killed 56 people during four days of fighting in South Sudan's eastern Jonglei state, after youth from the Nuer community attacked another ethnic group, a local official said on Tuesday, with the Nuer making up most of the casualties.

The territory of South Sudan, which gained independence from Sudan in 2011, has been plagued by blood feuds and clashes over cattle and land for decades.