MSF Staff, Dozens Killed in Renewed Violence in Unity State

April 18, 2021 (BENTIU) – A Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) staff member was among dozens of civilians killed in latest violence that erupted in Leer County of South Sudan’s Unity State on April 4, the medical charity said.

Peter Mathor Tap, according to MSF, had been working in Leer since 2007, initially as Senior Department Supervisor and more recently as Nursing Care Provider in one of MSF’s Community Based Health Care (CBHC) facilities.

He was shot and killed by armed aggressors on April 10, thus the second MSF staff member to be killed in Leer due to violence since December 2021.

“We are shocked and profoundly saddened by the tragic death of our colleague Peter. We send our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends,” said Federica Franco, MSF Head of Mission for South Sudan.

He added, “We strongly condemn the indiscriminate violence being carried out by armed groups that have killed and injured many innocent civilians in Leer, including those most vulnerable, such as children, elderly and persons with disabilities.”

Assessments carried out by the medical charity reportedly showed massive destructions in areas such as Adok, Pilleny, Thonyor and Touchria, where numerous people were killed, homes were set on fire and properties looted.

As a result, thousands of people have been forcibly displaced, including MSF staff. Those displaced are too scared to return home, and with many of them having lost all their belongings, they have little to return to.

Many people, MSF said, have sought refuge in swamps, where they are at risk of waterborne diseases such as cholera and diarrhea as well as malaria.

According to the agency, since the latest fighting begun, its clinic in Leer town has received more than 25 gunshot wounded, as well as several other trauma victims, including survivors of sexual violence. With the insecurity resulting in the evacuation of several humanitarian organizations in Leer, the medical charity’s clinic has remained one of the few fully functioning healthcare facilities in the county providing advanced emergency care.

“The level of atrocities witnessed, the persisting fear of being attacked, and the widespread destruction of medical facilities are severely affecting access to healthcare and even health seeking behaviours, as people are reluctant to travel to search for treatment,” further stressed Franco.

“Thousands of people displaced are in urgent need of humanitarian aid and medical care,” he added, urging all armed groups to respect international humanitarian law and immediately cease targeting civilians and health facilities.

Meanwhile, the head of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), Nicholas Haysom condemned the recent violence against civilians, looting and destruction of humanitarian properties in Leer.

“I am discouraged by the resurgence of subnational violence along with the attacks by armed and youth militias that has expanded the country from north to South, from east to west,” he told reporters last week.

At least 35 civilians, local officials said, died in attacks on several villages in Leer..

(ST)