Joseph Lagu (1931–2026) was a South Sudanese military officer, politician, and one of the central leaders of the southern struggle in the First Sudanese Civil War. He belonged to the Madi ethnic group from what is now Eastern Equatoria. Born in 1931, he trained as an officer in the Sudanese army, then defected in 1963 to join the southern resistance. He emerged as a key organizer and later the dominant leader of Anyanya (also called Anya-Nya), the main southern rebel army. Under his command, the movement became more unified, received external support (including from Israel), and fought for southern autonomy or self-determination against successive governments in Khartoum. Why he matters in the history of South Sudan. He ended the first civil war: He led the southern side into negotiations that produced the 1972 Addis Ababa Agreement. This granted Southern Sudan regional autonomy, ended roughly 17 years of fighting, and integrated many Anyanya fighters into the national army and police. It was the first major negotiated settlement of the north-south conflict. He served as President of the High Executive Council of the autonomous Southern Region (1978–1979) and as Second Vice President of Sudan (1982–1985). He later held diplomatic posts, including as Sudan’s permanent representative to the United Nations. John Garang (who later led the SPLM/A in the second civil war) served under Lagu in Anyanya. The autonomy gained in 1972 was later revoked, helping set the stage for the longer Second Sudanese Civil War. After the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, Lagu supported the push for a southern referendum and later served as a special adviser to President Salva Kiir. He is widely regarded as a foundational liberation figure of the southern cause—the generation before the SPLM. His death on 27 October 2026 (aged 94) prompted national mourning in South Sudan; Kiir ordered flags at half-mast and posthumously promoted him to full general. He was given a state burial near John Garang’s mausoleum in Juba. Lagu unified and led the Anyanya rebellion, secured the first major peace deal and southern autonomy, and remains a foundational figure in South Sudan’s long path toward independence. There is no South Sudan without him. May his soul rest in peace.