Geneva: The United Nations has issued a stern warning that South Sudan is facing a significant threat of reverting to full-scale war if urgent measures are not implemented to halt ongoing violence, human rights abuses, and entrenched impunity. This alarm was sounded in a new report released by the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan during a session of the Human Rights Council.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the report highlights severe abuses against civilians, including killings, sexual violence, arbitrary detention, forced displacement, and denial of essential needs, as fighting escalates nationwide. The humanitarian situation is described as deteriorating in this impoverished nation. The commission emphasized the escalating risks of mass atrocities and the breakdown of political protections, urging regional and international stakeholders to exert diplomatic pressure, impose sanctions, and enforce the UN arms embargo until tangible progress is achieved concerning human rights and accountability.
The report points out that actions by political and military leaders have undermined the 2018 peace agreement. Notably, these actions include the detention of opposition figures, the erosion of power-sharing agreements, and attempts to modify the peace deal terms. A significant incident highlighted is the arrest and removal of First Vice President Riek Machar last year, which reportedly destabilized key peace agreement provisions and prompted armed clashes of a magnitude unseen in nearly a decade.
South Sudan descended into civil war in 2013, two years after gaining independence, due to a political power struggle between President Salva Kiir and Machar. The conflict resulted in approximately 400,000 deaths before a tenuous peace was achieved in 2018. The UN report also drew attention to a dangerous shift in military tactics, including air strikes on civilian-populated areas, and raised concerns over the involvement of forces from neighboring Uganda, which may have violated the UN arms embargo.
Sexual violence remains pervasive and systematic, with women and girls continually facing the threat of rape and other abuses used as tools for terrorizing communities, forcing displacement, and fracturing social bonds. The commission criticized the persistent culture of impunity, where senior commanders and political leaders rarely face accountability for severe crimes. It also noted the shrinking civic space, with journalists, activists, and opposition members subjected to harassment, surveillance, and detention.
The UN called on the government to cease violations by its forces, release those detained without cause, and ensure basic freedoms. It also pressed for the swift establishment of long-overdue transitional justice mechanisms to prosecute war crimes committed since 2013. Fighting has intensified recently, particularly in Jonglei state, where opposition forces captured several government positions starting in December. In response, the army initiated a major military operation in late January, ordering civilians and aid groups to vacate certain areas.
The United Nations reported earlier this month that approximately 280,000 people have been displaced since late December, with over 235,000 from Jonglei alone. UNICEF has warned that over 450,000 children are at risk of acute malnutrition due to displacement and disrupted health services. Nearly 10 million people across South Sudan now require life-saving humanitarian assistance, with aid operations severely hampered by violence and looting, and access to vulnerable communities remaining restricted. The report underscores that civilians continue to bear the brunt of the conflict, as violence, displacement, and abuse exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis.