The United Nations has revealed that over one million people have sought refuge in South Sudan, fleeing the ongoing conflict in neighboring Sudan, Al Jazeera reports.
According to a recent update from the UN, more than 770,000 individuals have crossed through the Joda border crossing in the last 21 months alone. Further crossings at other points along the border have pushed the total number of refugees seeking safety in South Sudan over the one million mark since the outbreak of hostilities in April 2023. The joint statement released by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) underscores the magnitude of this displacement crisis.
Notably, a large proportion of those fleeing the conflict are South Sudanese nationals who had previously sought refuge in Sudan during their own country’s civil war. The statement notes that these individuals have been forced to uproot their lives yet again.
The influx of people has placed immense pressure on infrastructure in South Sudan, with the two transit centers in Renk County, initially designed to accommodate fewer than 5,000 people, now housing over 16,000. The UN is warning that resources, including healthcare, water, and shelter, are now “dangerously overstretched” and has issued an urgent appeal for increased support for both displaced people and the communities that are hosting them.
The conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) continues to escalate, with both sides accusing the other of war crimes and indiscriminate attacks on civilian populations. The war, which is nearing its second anniversary, has claimed the lives of at least 20,000 people and left some 25 million – half of Sudan’s population – facing severe hunger and an urgent need for humanitarian assistance.
Compounding the crisis, a UN-backed report from the Famine Review Committee of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has confirmed the presence of famine conditions in five areas within Sudan, including the Zamzam camp in North Darfur, Sudan’s largest displacement camp, and the Abu Shouk and al-Salam camps located in el-Fasher, the besieged capital of North Darfur.
Famine conditions have also been confirmed in some areas within the Nuba Mountains in southern Sudan.
