Sudan & South Sudan: UN struggles to cope with thousands of daily arrivals in transit centres in Renk

STAFF at the UN-run transit centres in Renk, South Sudan, help exhausted people to travel onwards to their final destinations in the hope of avoiding large numbers staying in this extremely remote, poorly resourced region. 

There’s hardly any water, food, sanitation, security or shelter. Many of the thousands who have crossed the border from Sudan are vulnerable and traumatised. They fled terrible violence and have spent weeks, in some cases months, trying to cross into South Sudan to reach safety. 

Since the outbreak of fighting in Sudan last April, the influx of people fleeing Sudan increased sharply at multiple border points. More than half a million have crossed the South Sudan border, according to UN estimates. 

Read more from UN News
Dated Friday, 23 February 2024 - here is a copy of the report in full:

Sudan: UN struggles to cope with thousands of daily arrivals in South Sudan transit camps

© IOM/Elijah Elaigwu. Sudanese refugees in the UN-run transit centre in Renk, South Sudan.

South Sudan, one of the world’s poorest countries, is dealing with the influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees from its northern neighbour, Sudan, which has been in the grip of a major conflict between the government and the Rapid Support Forces since April of last year.

Since the outbreak of fighting, the influx of people fleeing Sudan has increased sharply at multiple border points, and more than half a million individuals have crossed the South Sudan border, according to UN estimates.

At the UN-run transit centres in Renk, staff are helping exhausted individuals to travel onwards to their final destinations in the hope of avoiding large numbers staying in this extremely remote, poorly resourced part of the country.

Yvonne Ndege, a spokesperson with the UN migration agency, IOM, travelled to Renk to assess the conditions in the camp. 

She described the scene to Ben Malor from UN News.

Yvonne Ndege: This is one of the most remote parts of South Sudan. There’s hardly any water, food, sanitation, security or shelter. Many of the thousands of people who have crossed the border from Sudan are vulnerable and traumatized. They fled terrible violence and have spent weeks, in some cases months, trying to cross into South Sudan to reach safety.

UN News: How is the UN helping those arriving in Renk?

Yvonne Ndege: Hundreds of thousands of people have been assisted by the UN migration agency to continue moving to other destinations. This assistance is critical because what IOM and other UN agencies don’t want is for refugee camps to spring up in this location as it is so remote. There is no infrastructure, no medical facilities or resources of any kind for those vulnerable arrivals.

This has involved IOM putting on over 1,200 flights away from Renk to Malakal, the capital of Upper Nile state. It has also involved sea transportation, and we have helped over 100,000 to take boats to Malakal, which is a three-day journey overnight on the River Nile.

We have also assisted people with some road transportation to try to reach their communities of origin, but when you look at the volume of people arriving, this assistance is not enough, and the funds to continue to provide this onward transport assistance are dwindling and running out fast.

© IOM/Elijah Elaigwu. Sudanese refugees in the UN-run transit centre in Renk, South Sudan.

UN News: What have the displaced people been telling you about their experiences?

Yvonne Ndege: The conditions that they describe are completely horrific. Some say they fled violence and bullets, spending several days in the bush trying to reach the border. Others say they experienced sexual violence along the journey. We spoke to one family, a mother with her two daughters and her own mother, who travelled all the way from the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, to reach this border and cross into safety. She was very traumatized and upset. We spoke to another man, who said that his whole family, he and his sons, were being forced to actually join the fighting and take part in the violence. They didn’t want to, so they spent weeks trying to get here.

UN News: How serious are the risks of disease or hunger?

Yvonne Ndege: IOM staff have been providing medical checks and vaccinations to those arriving before they are transported to the main town of Renk for further assistance and care, but there are massive concerns about the risk of disease, hunger and further violence. There’s hardly any infrastructure in this remote area, no internet or mobile network of any kind and no food or water supplies. So, the risks are real.

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View original here: https://news.un.org/en/interview/2024/02/1146907

END

Sudan: Displacement crisis in Sudan deepens

If the fighting further escalates and spreads to Sudan's White Nile State it could significantly impact the work of UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations that provide critical assistance to over 437,000 South Sudanese refugees and some 433,000 internally displaced Sudanese there. 

Read more from UNHCR

Briefing notes 
Dated 19 December 2023 - here is a copy in full:

Displacement crisis in Sudan deepens as fighting spread

This is a summary of what was said by Wiliam Spindler – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

Refugees from Sudan wait at the Joda border point in South Sudan's Upper Nile State for transportation to the transit centre in Renk. © UNHCR/Ala Kheir

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is concerned at the deepening forced displacement crisis in Sudan and neighbouring countries as hundreds of thousands more people flee from the latest fighting in Sudan’s central Al Jazirah State, southeast of the capital, Khartoum.

We are also very concerned about reports of an escalation in the conflict in the Darfur Region. On 16 December, renewed fighting in El Fasher, in North Darfur, resulted in civilian casualties, injuries, and further displacement, followed by looting of homes and shops, and arrests of youth. In Nyala, in South Darfur, an aerial attack was reported, causing death, injuries and destruction of civilian homes.

Heavy fighting, including airstrikes and shootings, was reported on the outskirts of Wad Madani, the capital of the Al Jazirah State, on Friday, 15 December. The fighting has now reached the town. After conflict first broke out in Sudan’s capital in April this year, over half a million people, including some 7,000 refugees, fled to Wad Madani from Khartoum. 

With this latest bout of fighting, panic has reportedly spread among the civilian population in Wad Madani and people were seen leaving the town in vehicles and on foot, some for the second time in only a few months. According to IOM, between 250,000 and 300,000 people have fled Wad Madani and surrounding areas since the clashes began.  

UNHCR is working to deliver and distribute urgently needed core relief items to the people newly displaced from Al Jazirah to Sennar and Gedaref States. Despite efforts by national and international humanitarian organizations and local actors to provide assistance, the overall humanitarian situation remains dire.

Since the war broke out in April, more than 7 million people have fled their homes in Sudan, many of them moving repeatedly to find temporary safety. This repeated displacement shows how devastating this conflict has been for the civilian population.

We are very worried that if the fighting further escalates and spreads to White Nile State, it could significantly impact the work of UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations that provide critical assistance to over 437,000 South Sudanese refugees and some 433,000 internally displaced Sudanese there. Since the onset of the conflict in April, UNHCR has provided emergency shelter to approximately 42,000 families and core relief items to nearly 12,000 vulnerable families in White Nile State and, in collaboration with UN and NGO partners, has taken measures to mitigate the high risk of a cholera outbreak in displacement sites. However, a spread of the fighting or any new influx could disrupt health and WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) services, resulting in severe consequences.

There are also reports of people on the move towards South Sudan, where the border town of Renk is severely overcrowded and lacking enough aid to meet the needs of the people who have already arrived. 

Heavy rains have made the roads impassable, hampering the relocation of refugees. UNHCR and partners are doing what they can to prepare, but resources were already severely overstretched.

We continue to strongly appeal to all parties to end the conflict, to respect the safety of civilians in accordance with international law, and to allow humanitarian access so that critical lifesaving aid and services can reach those in need.

As the scale of the crisis and the potential for it to destabilize the entire region continues to grow, the world must not forget the ongoing situation in Sudan.

We appreciate the funding received already from many donors, but it is just not enough to meet the needs of the families that are facing unimaginable hardship.

The 2023 Sudan Regional Refugee Response Plan, which called for $1 billion to meet the needs of 1.8 million people in Chad, Central African Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan this year, is only 38 per cent funded.

For additional information:

• In Sudan: Assadullah Nasrullah, UNHCR, nasrulla@unhcr.org +249 912 178 991 
• In Nairobi: Faith Kasina, UNHCR, kasina@unhcr.org +254 113 427 094
• In Geneva: William Spindler, UNHCR, spindler@unhcr.org; +41 79 549 5998

View original: https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing-notes/displacement-crisis-sudan-deepens-fighting-spreads

ENDS

S. Sudan: Deployed unified forces arrive in Malakal

Report at Radio Tamazuj, Juba 

Dated Sunday, 26 November 2023 - here is a full copy:

Deployed unified forces arrive in Malakal

Soldiers belonging to the Unified Forces sit on the ground during a deployment ceremony at the Luri Military Training Centre in Juba on November 15, 2023. (PETER LOUIS GUME/AFP)

A cohesive force of 750 individuals, comprising soldiers from the signatories to the 2018 peace agreement – namely, SSPDF, SPLA-IO, and SSOA – arrived unarmed in Malakal, Upper Nile state, on Wednesday. They were dispatched from the capital, Juba.

Confirming the arrival of the first deployed battalion in Malakal, SPLA-IO spokesperson Col. Lam Paul Gabriel told Sudans Post that the unified peace forces, deployed to Upper Nile state last week, reached the state capital on Wednesday morning.

Col. Lam pointed out that the forces await directives from the unified army command in Juba. He warned that any delay in deploying them to designated areas might pose significant challenges.

 “They are already in Upper Nile. They reached Malakal on Wednesday morning. We are waiting for further directives from the CDF [Chief of Defense Forces] and the leadership in Juba,” he said. “We wait for the committee to be able to come to the command [headquarters] in Juba, and then they let us know what to do.”

Estimating that directives would arrive within a week, Col. Lam cautioned that prolonged stay in Malakal could exacerbate challenges. He explained, “I believe it will never take long because the longer they take in one place, the more challenges could start facing them.”

He outlined serious conditions, including operation costs, arming soldiers, and ensuring food availability for deployment, especially considering the accessibility challenges in Upper Nile state.

Col. Lam disclosed that Juba expects additional forces from Unity State, Upper Nile, and Bahr el Ghazal to arrive soon before deployment. “There is also ready 150 soldiers in the Muom Training Center of Leer County in Unity State. They started their journey to Juba on Tuesday, having left Panyijiar County. They were transported to Juba, and we also have another group in Bahr el Ghazal, with an additional group in the Upper Nile region that will be in Juba within the next week.”

Hundreds of unified forces were deployed at a long-overdue ceremony on 15 November, marking progress for the country's lumbering peace process.

The unification of forces was a key condition of the 2018 peace deal that ended a five-year conflict in which nearly 400,000 people died.

View original: https://radiotamazuj.org/en/news/article/deployed-unified-forces-arrive-in-malakal

END

Correction: UNISFA says no peacekeeper killed

Report at Radio Tamazuj - radiotamazuj.org/en
Dated Tuesday, 21 November 2023 - here is a copy in full:

UNISFA condemns Abyei attacks, says no peacekeeper was killed

UNISFA’s Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Benjamin Olufemi Sawyerr. (UN photo)

The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) on Monday strongly condemned Sunday’s attacks by a group of armed youths on villages in the area around Angath, Wunpeth, and Korioch in the Abyei.

The attacks resulted in an estimated 27 people killed and 14 injured.

In a statement, UNISFA however clarified that they did not lose any peacekeepers during the fighting. 

On Sunday evening, Abyei Information Minister Bulis Koch told Radio Tamazuj that a Ghanaian peacekeeper with UNISFA was among those killed in the ensuing fighting.

“Contrary to inaccurate information published in media and other reports, no UNISFA peacekeepers were killed or wounded during the incident,” the UNISFA statement illuminated.

According to the UN Force, in responding to the attacks, their peacekeepers moved rapidly to enhance security in the affected area by intensifying patrols and closely monitoring the situation.

“UNISFA leadership is also engaging with the Abyei Area Administration and Ngok Dinka traditional leaderships as well as stakeholders in Juba to ensure peace and security is maintained in the Abyei area,” the statement read in part. “UNISFA’s 

Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Benjamin Olufemi Sawyerr, reiterates the mission’s commitment to protecting civilians and calls on all communities to refrain from violence and commit to ensuring sustainable peace in Abyei.”

View original: https://radiotamazuj.org/en/news/article/unisfa-condemns-abyei-attacks-says-no-peacekeeper-was-killed

__________________________________

SEE UPDATE by Sudan Watch Editor Wed 22 Nov 2023 added to:

Sudan Watch - November 20, 2023

UN peacekeeper among 32 killed in attack in Abyei

From BBC News

By Richard Hamilton

BBC World Service Newsroom 

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2023/11/un-peacekeeper-among-32-killed-in.html

[Ends]

UN peacekeeper among 32 killed in attack in Abyei

From BBC News dated 04:37 20 Nov 2023
By Richard Hamilton
BBC World Service Newsroom - here is a copy in full:

UN peacekeeper among 32 killed in Sudan clashes

AFP Copyright: AFP Image caption: The UN has extended the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in Abyei

The Sudanese authorities in the disputed area of Abyei say at least 32 people have been killed after gunmen stormed local villages.

The Information Minister for Abyei, Bolis Kuoch, said more than 20 others were wounded when men opened fire on Sunday morning.

He said UN peacekeepers intervened to stop the violence but one of the peacekeepers was killed.

There have been ongoing hostilities between communities in Abyei over land and resources.

The region, rich in oil reserves, lies on the border between Sudan and South Sudan and is considered to be part of both countries, since a peace agreement was signed in 2005.

Last week the UN Security Council extended the mandate of its peacekeeping mission there for one more year.

Click here to view original. 

___________________________

POSTSCRIPT from Sudan Watch Editor

Note that any attack on peacekeepers constitutes a war crime. See UNISFA (United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei) Factsheet and map. Malakal in northern Upper Nile State, which has received huge numbers of South Sudanese refugees fleeing the conflict in Sudan, is where South Sudan deployed its first unified forces last Wednesday, unarmed. Also, 100 returnees in Unity State have headed back to transit camps near South Sudan-Sudan border citing hunger. Many have gone back to Sudan through Renk County in Upper Nile State and the Unity Oilfield road of Unity State.

Map of Abyei Area located on the border of Sudan and South Sudan, and Malakal in northern Upper Nile State, South Sudan. 

(Map courtesy Wikipedia)

______________________________

UPDATE from Sudan Watch Editor Wed 22 Nov 2023 12:27 GMT: 

The following report is surprising, especially considering the above report is from the BBC by Richard Hamilton. I'm always cautious when chronicling news. If in doubt, I wait to verify or leave it. In 20+ years of following the BBC's reports on Sudan and South Sudan, its news is rarely wrong.

This report says UNISFA in a statement clarified that they did not lose any peacekeepers during the fighting. “Contrary to inaccurate information published in media and other reports, no UNISFA peacekeepers were killed or wounded during the incident”. UNISFA says the attacks by a group of armed youths resulted in an estimated 27 people killed and 14 injured.

Report at Radio Tamazuj 

Dated Tuesday, 21 November 2023 - here is a copy in full:

UNISFA condemns Abyei attacks, says no peacekeeper was killed

UNISFA’s Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Benjamin Olufemi Sawyerr. (UN photo)

The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) on Monday strongly condemned Sunday’s attacks by a group of armed youths on villages in the area around Angath, Wunpeth, and Korioch in the Abyei.

The attacks resulted in an estimated 27 people killed and 14 injured.

In a statement, UNISFA however clarified that they did not lose any peacekeepers during the fighting. 

On Sunday evening, Abyei Information Minister Bulis Koch told Radio Tamazuj that a Ghanaian peacekeeper with UNISFA was among those killed in the ensuing fighting.

“Contrary to inaccurate information published in media and other reports, no UNISFA peacekeepers were killed or wounded during the incident,” the UNISFA statement illuminated.

According to the UN Force, in responding to the attacks, their peacekeepers moved rapidly to enhance security in the affected area by intensifying patrols and closely monitoring the situation.

“UNISFA leadership is also engaging with the Abyei Area Administration and Ngok Dinka traditional leaderships as well as stakeholders in Juba to ensure peace and security is maintained in the Abyei area,” the statement read in part. “UNISFA’s 

Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Benjamin Olufemi Sawyerr, reiterates the mission’s commitment to protecting civilians and calls on all communities to refrain from violence and commit to ensuring sustainable peace in Abyei.”

View original: https://radiotamazuj.org/en/news/article/unisfa-condemns-abyei-attacks-says-no-peacekeeper-was-killed

______________________________

Related report

Sudan Watch - November 22, 2023

Correction: UNISFA says no peacekeeper killed

UNISFA condemns Abyei attacks, says no peacekeeper was killed

Full story: https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2023/11/correction-unisfa-says-no-peacekeeper.html

[Ends]