UGANDA DEPLOYS TROOPS TO SOUTH SUDAN

Uganda has deployed its forces to South Sudan following renewed tensions between government forces and the White Army militia in Nasir, Upper Nile State.

Kampala is a long time ally of current South Sudanese president Salva Kiir. Uganda also sent its forces to fight alongside his government’s troops during his country’s civil war (2013-2020), which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of at least 4.5-million. The current deployment of Ugandan forces has intensified fears that the recent clashes will grow into a wider conflict.

The US has ordered the evacuation of its non-emergency staff from South Sudan, while the UN has called on both sides to swiftly find a political solution that safeguards the lives of civilians.

According to the UN, nearly 60% of South Sudan’s population (7.7-million people) will face acute hunger - the most extreme form - by July 2025. By April this year, 2-million children are expected to suffer from malnourishment. And floods in 2024 displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Another civil war would only aggravate an already dire humanitarian situation.

Sources

https://apnews.com/article/south-sudan-fighting-ugandan-troops-3e36094b4eaea9247843ea3fad86f03d

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/9/nearly-380000-people-displaced-by-south-sudan-floods-un-says

https://www.deccanherald.com/world/sixty-percent-of-south-sudan-population-facing-acute-hunger-un-928942.html

https://www.unocha.org/publications/report/south-sudan/south-sudan-floods-snapshot-1-november-2024