Violence leaves 739 civilians dead in South Sudan

JUBA — At least 739 civilians were killed in South Sudan between January and March 2025, according to a report released Wednesday by the United Nations.

A human rights report published by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Wednesday documented the killing of 739 civilians and 679 injuries in the last three months.

According to the report, the majority of these attacks were carried out by community-based militias and local armed groups.

However, the number of civilians harmed by organized armed groups and military actors is also rising.

The report claimed that 149 women and children were abducted and 40 subjected to conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) between January and March 2025.

A Human Rights Quarterly Brief shows that more than 1,600 people were either killed, injured, abducted, or sexually assaulted this year, making it the worst three-month period since 2020.

Compared to the last quarter of 2024, this marks a sharp increase, nearly double the number of deaths, and almost twice as many people injured. Abductions and cases of sexual violence also rose slightly.

Warrap State was the worst affected, with more than 420 deaths and almost 300 injuries.

In Central Equatoria, the number of victims more than tripled, with a rise in abductions reported.

Children and women continue to suffer the most. The number of child victims rose by 50 percent, and women and girls made up the vast majority of those subjected to sexual and gender-based violence.

Guang Cong, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the UNMISS, called on the government to protect civilians.

“It is the primary responsibility of the government to protect civilians and prevent conflicts, which continue to cause immense harm to communities across the country,” said Guang.

“Together with regional and international partners, UNMISS calls for concerted, collective efforts at the national, state, and local levels to address the underlying causes and drivers, facilitate the resolution of grievances through dialogue, and hold perpetrators accountable in order to end the deadly cycle of violence.”