JUBA, July 17 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Wednesday expressed concern about widespread attacks against civilians, driven primarily by sub-national armed violence involving community-based militia groups in the country.
The UN mission said between January and March 2024, it documented 240 incidents of violence affecting 913 civilians nationwide, of whom 468 were killed, 328 injured, 70 abducted, and 47 were subjected to conflict-related sexual violence, which represents a 24 percent increase in the number of violent incidents compared to the same period last year.
"Inter- and intra-communal violence by community-based militias or civil defense groups remains the primary source of subnational violence, accounting for 87 percent of the victims documented across South Sudan," UNMISS said in a report in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
According to UNMISS, Warrap State suffered the highest rates of violence among civilians, accounting for 37 percent of the total number of civilian victims nationwide. Jonglei and Eastern Equatoria states were the next most affected.
The number of documented abductions, however, reportedly decreased 30 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, and reported incidents of conflict-related sexual violence went down 25 percent.
Nicholas Haysom, special representative of the UN secretary-general for South Sudan and head of UNMISS, noted that although nationwide trends of violence involving the conventional parties to the conflict remained relatively low during the period, military operations and activities involving government security forces and organized armed groups and their respective proxy armed elements continue to place civilians at risk, predominantly in parts of Central Equatoria State.
"We cannot emphasize enough the urgent need for collective action by national, state, and local authorities, as well as community leaders and national politicians, to resolve long-standing grievances peacefully, especially as South Sudan approaches its first elections," Haysom said.
He stressed building a culture of human rights is fundamental to achieving sustainable security, peace, and democracy. ■