JUBA, South Sudan – Clashes between government troops and a local militia have brought humanitarian operations to a standstill in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State, threatening the lives of an estimated 60,000 severely malnourished children, according to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF.
The violence erupted earlier this week near key points along the White Nile River, a critical supply route for delivering food and nutritional supplements to remote communities.
The Nuer White Army, a largely autonomous ethnic militia, reportedly ambushed a government convoy in Fangak County, prompting retaliatory strikes by the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF).
“We are now unable to move any supplies by barge along the Nile,” said Mary-Ellen McGroarty, WFP Country Director for South Sudan, in a statement on WFP’s official website. “This puts tens of thousands of vulnerable children at extreme risk of starvation.”
UNICEF echoed the alarm, warning that medical kits, therapeutic food, and safe water stockpiles in Jonglei and Upper Nile states are now nearly depleted.
The agency emphasized that without immediate access, acute malnutrition rates will likely spike, threatening to reverse fragile gains in child survival across the region.
The blockade marks one of the most significant interruptions of aid since the signing of the 2018 peace agreement, which had brought relative stability to much of the country.
However, recent flare-ups—often driven by unresolved local grievances and political rivalries—have raised fears of a slow return to civil war.
“We urge all armed actors to allow the safe passage of humanitarian assistance,” said Nicholas Haysom, the UN Special Representative for South Sudan, in a briefing published by UNMISS.
“This is not only a moral obligation—it’s a legal one.”
Meanwhile, South Sudan’s Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs has acknowledged the scale of the disruption but has yet to announce a negotiated ceasefire or humanitarian corridor.
Observers say the riverine clashes could further destabilize an already fragile situation, with ripple effects likely to extend into neighboring Sudan and Ethiopia, where refugee camps are already overburdened.
