South Sudan: UN Peacekeepers Face Conflict-Driven Humanitarian Crisis (December 1, 2017)

As the mandate renewal of the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) approaches, conflict continues to threaten civilians and drive a protracted humanitarian crisis. More than 2.1 million refugees have fled the country and the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) has increased to over 1.8 million. UNMISS is tasked with the Protection of Civilians (PoC), including 209,000 IDPs at UN PoC sites, and creating conditions that allow over 200 aid organizations to provide for 7.6 million South Sudanese in need of humanitarian assistance. According to the UN, the ongoing arrival of the Regional Protection Force (RPF) to Juba will free UNMISS to redeploy across South Sudan, increasing accessibility for aid workers, protection for civilians, and monitoring of human rights. However, humanitarian conditions contributing to South Sudan’s destabilized environment will only worsen until a durable peace is achieved.