UNHCR condemns air raid on Sudanese refugees in South Sudan
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United Nations High Commission for Refugees
UNHCR condemns air raid on Sudanese refugees in South Sudan
PRESS RELEASE
At least one Sudanese refugee boy is injured and 14 others missing
following an air raid in South Sudan yesterday (Monday). UNHCR is
alarmed by this attack on vulnerable refugees already fleeing violence
in Sudan’s Blue Nile state.
The aerial bombing occurred just after 10 am local time in Elfoj in
South Sudan’s Upper Nile state. It was carried out in two instances
with several bombs falling at the refugee transit site, located less
than 10km from the border with Sudan.
At the time of the incident, about 5,000 refugees were at the site
from where movement to new settlements take place on a daily basis.
UNHCR and IOM teams with 14 trucks were supervising relocation
operations when the first round of bombings took place. Refugees
jumped out of the trucks and scattered. Agency staff also had to seek
safety.
After the bombings, agency staff rapidly mobilised the refugees. The
convoy left for a safe location some 70 kilometres from the border
with 1,140 individuals on board. This brought to 11,477 the total
number of refugees moved from Elfoj since relocation operations
started on January 6th. About 4,000 more refugees relocated
spontaneously from Elfoj.
There were previous attacks on Sudanese refugees in border areas. Last
November, New Gufa an entry point for refugees in Maban County, Upper
Nile state was bombed over several days. Yida refugee settlement, in
Unity state near the border with Sudan’s South Kordofan state, was
also hit by air raids.
Overall, more than 20,000 refugees have relocated spontaneously or
with the assistance of the international community from border areas
to new settlements in Upper Nile and Unity states. Last week, UNHCR
and partners began relocating Sudanese refugees from Yida.
In total, more than 78,000 people have fled Sudan’s South Kordofan and
Blue Nile states since August last year. Of this number, more than
54,000 are in South Sudan’s Upper Nile state and 24,000 in Unity
state.
For more information on this topic, please contact: In Juba, South
Sudan: Teresa Ongaro, mobile: +211 927 770 040 In Nairobi (UNHCR
regional hub): Vivian Tan, mobile: +254 735 337 608 In Geneva:
Fatoumata Lejeune-Kaba: mobile: +41 79 249 3483
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