( CNN ) -- More than 65 people have been killed in two days of clashes between rebel groups and soldiers in Southern Sudan 's Upper Nile state , an army spokesman said . Philip Aguer , spokesman for the Sudan People 's Liberation Army ( SPLA ) told CNN.com that forces loyal to a militia leader named Oliny attacked the village of Uach west of Malakal in Upper Nile state . `` 55 members of the militia and seven SPLA soldiers were killed , and we believe a number of civilians also died , but we are still getting information . '' Oliny , Aguer said , is a former member of Southern Sudanese politician Lam Akol 's militia . `` But we do n't know if he is still associated with him . '' Aguer also said that he believes that Oliny was receiving military support from the government in northern Sudan . `` They have received new weapons . We suspect they all acted in coordination with Khartoum ... I think things are going to continue escalating , '' he said . However , Sudan 's dominant National Congress Party ( NCP ) in the north denied having any involvement . Rabie Abdelati , an NCP party official , said on Monday : `` If we really wanted to go back to war , we would not have signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement ( the 2005 accord ) or accepted the referendum . `` We are hoping for a strong south after secession . If the south is not stable the north will not be stable , '' he said . Akol , a seasoned Southern Sudanese politician and a former member of the SPLA , broke from the SPLA in 2009 and created a new party , the Sudanese Peoples Liberation Movement-Democratic Change ( SPLM-DC ) . Akol rejected any association with Oliny 's militia . `` He was never a part of the SPLM-DC , '' he told CNN.com . `` He is a Shiluk youth who with others were defending their land from Dinka who tried to take their land , '' he told CNN.com . The fighting took place in areas dominated by the Shiluk tribe , which Akol belongs to . The SPLA on the other hand is dominated by members of the Dinka tribe . The fighting comes days after more than 40 people had been killed in clashes between soldiers and another rebel militia , George Athor , in Southern Sudan , . Rebel leader George Athor has been saying his forces have killed more than 100 people , most of them soldiers , since a fresh round of fighting started last week . But Philip Aguer , a spokesman for Southern Sudan 's military , said Athor 's claims are exaggerated . Athor took up arms in 2010 when he was not elected governor of Southern Sudan 's Jonglei state . The fighting comes just four months before the region is due to become independent . The south is expected to secede on July 9 after southerners overwhelmingly voted to declare independence from the north in a January referendum -- a vote promised in a 2005 peace accord that ended decades of civil war between north and south .
Increasing violence comes as south prepares to declare independence from north . Militia forces attacked village of Uach in Upper Nile state , military spokesman says . SPLA spokesman believes militia leader Oliny is getting help from Khartoum . Comment: