September 2, 2023 (RENK) – The influx of people fleeing the conflict in Sudan continues, with more people expected to arrive as the fighting continues, the UN humanitarian agency (OCHA) said.
Joda/Renk border remains the main point of entry for about 97% of new arrivals, including returnees, refugees and asylum-seekers, it stated.OCHA said protection and mental health and psychosocial support teams continue to report protection risks that hinder the movement of returnees from Sudan to South Sudan, as well as grave rights violations by armed groups, including violence, harassment and abuse, extortion and theft, forced recruitment of children and sexual violence against women and men.Refugee men, according the UN, reported witnessing numerous gender based violence incidents perpetrated against women en route to Abyei.”Testimonies from women in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State revealed systematic use of sexual violence by armed men along the road into South Sudan,” it stressed amid calls for immediate action in strengthening gender-based violence response capacity, including clinical management of rape, psychosocial support and gender based violence case management, among others.
Meanwhile, the revised emergency response plan for the Sudan crisis has been finalized and will be launched as part of the 2023 Sudan Regional Refugee Response Plan.
The South Sudan Emergency Response Plan foresees an additional 350,000 people arriving in South Sudan by the end of the year and the total requirements stand at $356 million.
An estimated 4.8 million people have been displaced inside and outside Sudan due to the ongoing conflict between the Sudanese army (SAF) and rival military factions, the UN said.
(ST)
