More displacement of civilians continues in Unity state
May 30, 2015 (BENTIU) – More displacement of civilians in the South Sudan’s oil-rich Unity state has reportedly occurred in the counties of Koch, Mayiandit, Leer, Guit and Rubkotna for the last two weeks. This is due to the ongoing offensive by government’s troops on positions of forces loyal to former vice president, Riek Machar.
Affected civilians said they fled from their areas after government forces attacked them and had to decide to seek shelter and security in the UN compounds.
Nyanen Kuol, told Sudan Tribune over satellite phone from Bentiu on Saturday that life while hiding in the bushes was unbearable and decided with others to walk many days to reach the protection site.
She said there were many children in the UN camp who had no parents as many of their parents might have been killed in the attacks or gone hiding in the bushes. To reach a safer place, she said, had never been easy as some of the IDPs walked for 120 kilometers along the way to Bentiu.
“It took us a whole week to reach here. We have no other option [than] to die in the bush without food. But we offered ourselves to die on the road to reach UN camp,” she added.
Many children and girls between 10 and 16 years old ended up being raped on their way before they could reach a safer place like the UN camps.
UN reports also expressed deep concerns about unusual movement of civilians, describing it life threatening as they walked long distance to reach a protection of civilians site in Bentiu.
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has reported over 21,000 people who were displaced by the ongoing offensive by pro-government forces have entered the camps near Bentiu.
(ST)