At least 10 people have been killed and dozens more injured in South Sudan after a hand grenade exploded in a nightclub packed with revellers.

Some 500 people were dancing at a venue in the western city of Yambio on Friday when an attacker threw the missile into the crowd, according to police commissioner James Monday Enoka.

“We found four people dead on (the) spot”, he said.

Mr Enoka said the incident was an “isolated criminal act”, unrelated to South Sudan’s ongoing civil war, which has pitted President Salva Kiir’s military against opponents led by his former Vice President Riek Machar.

“The criminal will face a court of law,” he added.

South Sudan’s five-year civil war has led to the wide availability of grenades and other weapons in the country. In March, five children were killed in the southern state of Imatong when a hand grenade they were playing with exploded.

South Sudan split from Sudan in 2011, only to be plunged into conflict in December 2013 following a power struggle between Mr Kiir and Mr Machar.

The pair signed a deal that seeks to end the conflict last month, ushering in a sense of stability to Africa’s youngest nation.

Much rests on the proposed agreement. The conflict is estimated to have killed 190,000 people since its outbreak in 2013, while more than 4 million have been displaced.

In photos: South Sudan ghost town Show all 20 1 /20 In photos: South Sudan ghost town In photos: South Sudan ghost town An abandoned fuel depot in the town of Malakal Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town South Sudanese girls walk in the town of Malakal Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Internally displaced people play football in the Protection of Civilians Camp, run by the UN Mission Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A Quran inside an abandoned mosque Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A man waits at a medical clinic in the village of Wau Shilluk Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A man carries sacks of food aid Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Indian army peacekeepers with UNMISS (UN Mission in South Sudan) look inside a health clinic destroyed by fighting in the village of Wau Shilluk Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Internally displaced people stand on roofs of the camp Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Bullet holes in an abandoned fuel depot sign Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town People are treated at a health clinic Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A man sitting in a sewing stall Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A man fishes on the white Nile Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A plant growing on the window of a health clinic destroyed by fighting Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town An abandoned gas station Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Simon Pakuang, 63, who fled his village as the civil war in 2015 flared up, posing for a portrait Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A destroyed structure Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A man walks in the POC (Protection of Civilians) Camp, run by the UN Mission in South Sudan near the town of Malakal, in the Upper Nile state of South Sudan, September 9, 2018. REUTERS/Baz Ratner SEARCH "MALAKAL BAZ" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. BAZ RATNER Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Bullet holes in a sign welcoming people to Malakal City Council Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town Desks at an abandoned school Reuters In photos: South Sudan ghost town A Bangladeshi Navy peacekeeper from UNMISS (UN Mission in South Sudan) looks at a World Food Program barge while patrolling on the white Nile Reuters

While UN efforts to stem the conflict have previously fallen short, South Sudanese officials are reportedly cautiously optimistic about the peace deal.