Clashes in South Sudan have spread south from Bentiu, the capital of Unity State, forcing civilians and medical workers to flee from the town of Leer.
Leer County was the scene of some of the initial fighting at the outset of the current crisis in December, at oilfields around Thar Jath, but since then the area was largely spared the heavy fighting that raged in northern parts of the state.
The area along with other southern counties of the state remained in the hands of opposition forces even after SPLA recaptured Bentiu on 10 January. Skirmishes but no major clashes had yet been confirmed since then.
With government troops reported to be advancing on Leer, residents have taken flight along with more than 10,000 people who had sought shelter in Leer after being displaced by earlier fighting in Bentiu. They have now been displaced for a second time.
The only functioning hospital in southern Unity State, in the rebel-held town of Leer, was run by the organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Since 21 January the organization evacuated its non-local staff from the area, but many locally-hired staff opted to remain, until Friday.
MSF said Friday that 240 South Sudanese staff working at their Leer hospital “fled into the bush,” taking with them patients who could not walk on their own and leaving the hospital completely abandoned.
“MSF local staff continued running the hospital in Leer for as long as they could,” explained Raphael Gorgeu, MSF head of mission. “However in the past three days, the situation became too unstable and the only way to provide medical care was to take patients out of the hospital and to flee with the population into the bush.”
The medical organization says it is “extremely worried for the safety and wellbeing of our staff and patients.” It also says the displaced population is now living in the open without adequate food, clean water or shelter, making them more vulnerable to disease outbreaks and malnutrition.
OCHA, the UN coordination agency, confirmed the displacement in Unity State saying, “Fighting in the southern counties of the state continued to displace communities from in Leer and Koch counties. Due to the ongoing insecurity, the humanitarian response remained confined to Bentiu.”
Col. Philip Aguer, the army spokesman, declined to comment on the security situation in Leer, saying he had no contact with SPLA forces in that area.
Meanwhile, there are unconfirmed reports of clashes in neighboring parts of Warrap State, in particular in Tonj North County, possibly involving opposition forces withdrawing from Unity State.
Photo: Soldiers in Bentiu, 12 January 2014 (Mackenzie Knowles-Coursin/AP)