Juba, Jan 6 The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Monday expressed concern about the impacts of communal violence on civilians, following the killings of 299 people between July and September 2024.
UNMISS said in its latest quarterly report released in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, that communal violence remains the key driver of conflict affecting civilians, resulting in a heavy toll on people across the country.
The UN Peacekeeping Mission's Human Rights Division documented 206 incidents affecting 792 civilians, of which 299 were killed, 310 injured, 151 abducted, and 32 were subjected to conflict-related sexual violence between July and September 2024, according to the report.
It said that despite a four per cent fall in violent incidents, from 215 cases to 206, compared to the same period in 2023, the total number of victims rose 24 per cent to 792 cases from 641.
UNMISS said the number of civilians killed went down seven per cent, from 321 to 299, while the tally of people injured surged 34 per cent, from 231 to 310, during the same period.
Nicholas Haysom, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for South Sudan and head of UNMISS, called for accountability, noting the trend of increasing violence against women and abductions is alarming.
"While UNMISS continues to proactively protect civilians, I call for concerted efforts by national, state and local authorities, as well as community leaders, to resolve longstanding grievances and find locally sustainable solutions to conflict drivers," he said.
Haysom urged the government to swiftly investigate human rights violations and abuses and hold all perpetrators to account.
The report said that there has also been a steep increase in abduction and conflict-related sexual violence, from 65 cases to 151 in the same period, while noting a 35 per cent reduction in violent incidents, from 317 to 206, and a 25 per cent fall in civilian casualties, from 1,062 to 792, as compared with the previous three months (April to June 2024).
UNMISS said the highest number of victims killed were documented in Warrap State, accounting for 60 per cent of the total number of civilian deaths, whereas the majority of abductions took place in Central Equatoria State, constituting 69 per cent of all documented abductions in the country, and most of these victims were men, Xinhua news agency reported.
It said tensions between government security forces and the National Salvation Front, a rebel splinter group, continue to threaten the security and protection of civilians across the Greater Equatoria region, countering the terms of the Cessation of Hostilities signed by both parties.
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