Chuol Jany
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has reported that South Sudan is facing a major humanitarian crisis as tens of thousands of people flee the escalating violence in Sudan.
MSF says over the past few weeks, more than 80,000 people have crossed into South Sudan, many of them with serious injuries.
Since the beginning of December, an average of 5,000 people have entered the country each day, fleeing conflict from Sudan’s White Nile, Blue Nile, and Sennar states. The influx has overwhelmed the resources of towns like Renk, leaving many displaced people in urgent need of assistance.
“We’ve had to set up 14 extra tents around the hospital to treat the growing number of war-wounded patients arriving,” said Emanuele Montobbio, MSF’s emergency coordinator in Renk. “We’re doing everything we can, working alongside the International Committee of the Red Cross, but the situation is overwhelming. Just a few dozen have received surgery, while over 100 patients with severe injuries still need urgent medical care.”
Outside the transit centers in Renk, thousands of people are living under trees or in makeshift shelters, with limited access to food, clean water, and healthcare. The lack of basic services, combined with poor sanitation, is creating a heightened risk of disease outbreaks, especially as Renk is already grappling with a cholera outbreak.
“Immediate action is needed,” said Roselyn Morales, MSF’s deputy medical coordinator in South Sudan. “Thousands are living in dire conditions, without shelter, clean water, or adequate healthcare. We urgently call for both South Sudanese authorities and international organizations to ramp up their efforts to meet the critical needs of these displaced people.”
The two transit centers in Renk, designed for just 8,000 people, are now housing over 17,000. While many refugees initially entered South Sudan through the official Joda border crossing, more are now using informal routes to the east of Renk. Over 82,000 new arrivals have been recorded in various areas, including Joda, Duku Duku, Jerbana, Shemmedi, Gosfami, and Atam.
“We were forced to flee when our village was set on fire,” said Alhida Hammed, a displaced woman from Sudan’s Blue Nile state, who is receiving treatment for a gunshot wound at Renk County Hospital. “We live under a tree now. Home is no longer a safe place for us.”
Bashir Ismail, another displaced person from Blue Nile state, shared his traumatic experience: “I was at the market when the bombing started. A blast hit me in the chest. I was so disoriented I lost track of what was happening. The next thing I knew, I was in Renk County Hospital.”
MSF said is deploying mobile clinics to provide primary healthcare in the informal settlements of Gosfami, Atam, Jerbana, and Joda. On December 17 alone, MSF teams conducted over 250 medical consultations in Gosfami and referred critically ill patients to Renk County Hospital.
As the crisis deepens, MSF and other organizations continue to call for immediate, coordinated action to address the dire needs of the displaced and wounded people arriving in South Sudan