The displaced IDPs, who arrived on Monday, reportedly trekked on foot to reach safety after recent attacks in their home area left nearly 200 dead. The violence, blamed on armed youths allegedly from Mayom County in Unity State, has triggered fresh fears of further assaults.
Simon Lual Buuk, the Information Director in the office of the Aweil South County Commissioner, told Sudans Post in an interview on Wednesday that the situation facing the new arrivals is dire.
“They fled their homes due to fear of renewed attacks and had no option but to walk long distances to reach Tiar-Aliet,” Buuk said.
He said many of the displaced are now sheltering in overcrowded public facilities, including a local health centre that has already run out of essential drugs, as well as churches in Aluel Boma, where they have stayed for nearly a week without adequate assistance.
Buuk described the humanitarian conditions as “extremely poor,” noting that many families lack food, clean water, and basic non-food items.
“Over 300 IDPs from Abiemnom are currently in Aluel Boma awaiting verification and humanitarian assistance,” he said.
“We visited the site together with the county’s Disaster Risk Management Committee and Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) officials to assess their situation,” he added.
According to Buuk, the majority of those displaced are vulnerable groups, including children, elderly people, and lactating mothers, many of whom have gone for days without food.
“The biggest challenge is lack of food and shelter,” he added. “We are appealing to state authorities and humanitarian partners to urgently intervene and provide lifesaving support.”
He said local communities in Aweil South have offered limited assistance despite facing their own economic hardships and warned that the situation could worsen without external support.
“We urge aid organisations operating in Aweil Town to respond quickly. The host community has done what it can, but the needs are beyond its capacity,” Buuk said.
Some of the displaced residents told local authorities they chose to flee to Northern Bahr el Ghazal because of its relative stability compared to their home area, despite the difficult living conditions they now face.
On March 1, 2026, armed assailants launched a coordinated attack on Awarpiny, the administrative headquarters of Awarpiny County in South Sudan’s Ruweng Administrative Area (RAA). The assault, which lasted from approximately 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m., left at least 169 people dead—who were subsequently buried in mass graves—along with 68 wounded and 15 missing, according to local leaders.
The toll rose to 213 according to a list unveiled during the memorial prayer held in Juba on 21st March 2026. The breakdown reveals that among those killed were 130 civilians, including women and children, 76 members of organised forces, and seven foreigners. At least 109 people were injured, while 43 remained.
An investigation by Sudans Post reveals that armed youth from Mayom County operating with direct logistical and political support from senior government and military officials, specifically from the SSPDF’s 4th Infantry Division under the command of Lt. Gen. Matthew Puljang, were responsible for the attack.
In a statement issued in mid-March, Edmund Yakani, the Executive Director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), urged leaders in the Ruweng Administrative Area and Unity State to urgently pursue dialogue to prevent possible retaliatory violence following the massacre. This call seems to have been ignored.
