Millions Displaced In South Sudan

Months of fighting and insecurity have forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes in South Sudan’s eastern Jonglei State, triggering “one of the most severe conflict-related displacement emergencies in recent years”, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday.

Fighting between the national army and the opposing Sudan People’s Liberation Movement militia, has intensified, particularly in Jonglei’s Akobo County – and civilians continue to bear the brunt.

Around 140,000 people have been displaced there alone, while more than 300,000 have been uprooted across Jonglei and neighbouring states since December last year – adding to nearly two million people internally displaced.

At the same time, approximately 100,000 people have fled into neighbouring Ethiopia in search of safety, with population movements remaining fluid as thousands return home in recent weeks.

Shelters made from sticks Many families are returning to find their homes destroyed, or looted, forcing them to cram into unfinished buildings and makeshift shelters made from sticks and plastic sheeting.

Constrained humanitarian access across several locations has cut off the most vulnerable from critical aid, further deepening the crisis.

With South Sudan’s rainy season now underway, the world’s youngest nation, which has faced repeated waves of conflict, displacement and climate shocks since independence in 2011, is likely to face flooding - another layer of hardship.