South Sudan on the Brink: 75 Civilians Dead, UN Warns of Escalating Crisis
The United Nations has sounded the alarm over worsening violence in South Sudan, revealing that at least 75 civilians have been killed and 78 injured since February amid intensifying clashes between government and opposition forces.
According to a statement released by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk, hostilities between the South Sudanese army and opposition groups, including their allied militias, have sparked a new wave of bloodshed and insecurity. Arbitrary arrests, hate speech, and attacks on civilian areas have also surged, painting a grim picture for the country’s fragile peace process.
“The escalating hostilities in South Sudan portend a real risk of further exacerbating the already dire human rights and humanitarian situation,” Turk warned.
Fighting flared in February in Nasir County, Upper Nile State, involving the notorious White Army militia, reportedly linked to the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO), headed by First Vice President Riek Machar. The violence reached a tragic peak on March 7, when 27 people, including a UN crew member, were killed during an evacuation mission.
The government’s crackdown was swift, resulting in the arrest of several officials—including Machar, who remains under house arrest. Between March 5 and 26, 55 SPLM-IO affiliated officials were detained across South Sudan, according to the UN.
Recent military offensives by the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) between May 3 and 20 have included aerial bombardments and ground assaults in Jonglei State’s Fangak region and Tonga County in Upper Nile. Civilian-populated areas have not been spared—Doctors Without Borders confirmed one of their medical facilities was struck.
On May 21, the SPLA-IO launched a counter-offensive, aiming to reclaim lost territories in Fangak. The renewed violence has triggered further displacement, deepening the humanitarian crisis in already vulnerable regions.
“The parties must urgently pull back from the brink,” Turk emphasized, calling for full adherence to the 2018 peace agreement and the protection of civilians and humanitarian access.
The UN also urged the South Sudanese authorities to allow international monitors to access detention facilities managed by the National Security Service to assess the welfare of those arrested.
As hostilities spiral, fears are mounting that South Sudan could slip back into full-scale civil war, undoing years of painstaking peacebuilding efforts.
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South Sudan on the Brink: 75 Civilians Dead, UN Warns of Escalating Crisis