The number of civilians harmed by armed groups and conventional parties to South Sudan’s conflict rose by 51 percent in 2024, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) reported Saturday, warning of a sharp deterioration in the country’s security and political landscape.
In its latest brief on violence against civilians, UNMISS documented 1,019 violent incidents affecting 3,657 civilians last year.
That marks a 15 percent increase in incidents and a nine percent rise in the number of victims compared to 2023.
Of the civilians affected, 1,561 were killed, 1,299 injured, 551 abducted, and 246 subjected to conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). Victims and eyewitnesses, alongside reports from field missions and protection partners, formed the basis of the report’s findings.
Armed communal violence – primarily perpetrated by community-based militias and civil defence groups – accounted for nearly 80 percent of civilian harm.
Warrap state recorded the highest number of civilian deaths and injuries, while Western Equatoria saw the most incidents of sexual violence.
Most abductions were reported in Central Equatoria, allegedly carried out by splinter groups of the National Salvation Front, followed by Jonglei where armed elements from the Murle community were implicated.
UNMISS head Nicholas Haysom called for dialogue and reconciliation to defuse tensions and building trust among various tribal groups and other players in the South Sudanese conflict.
“Protecting civilians and preventing violence requires urgent action by authorities at the national, state and local levels as well as by communities to address the root causes of conflict and find non-violent solutions,” Haysom said.
He said the South Sudanese government holds primary responsibility for civilian protection and called for measures to halt violence and bring perpetrators to justice.
The UN peacekeeping mission supports these efforts through thousands of patrols annually and by facilitating community dialogue and national peace processes.
South Sudan, the world’s youngest nation, gained independence from Sudan in 2011 but plunged into civil war just two years later.
A 2018 peace deal established a unity government but recent developments threaten to unravel fragile gains.
In an April 16 briefing to the UN Security Council, Haysom warned that the arrest of opposition leader Riek Machar and renewed mobilisation of armed factions have heightened the risk of a return to full-scale conflict.
JN/APA