Wednesday, April 13, 2011

800 Killed in South Sudan in 2011, Says UN

UN: 800 killed in South Sudan in 2011

Wed Apr 13, 2011 11:22PM
presstv.ir

The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan Lise Grande says at least 800 people have been killed during violence in South Sudan in the current year.

Grande said on Wednesday that the number of displaced people has doubled to hit 94,000 in the past month, AFP reported.

She also warned that the deteriorating security situation on the ground will cause more people to need emergency aid.

The figures come more than two months after the southerners voted in a referendum for secession from the North and several months before the new state is internationally recognized.

The UN official, however, expressed hope that the newborn country will move forward with "spirit of unification".

"The euphoria of being free, of being born into a new state, having your own republic, I think this will be a tremendously unifying time," Grande said.

The UN says at least 980 people were killed and nearly 215,000 others fled their homes in 2010 across the country, while the 2011 casualties reveal the scale of the challenges that South Sudan faces.

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