The United Nations refugee agency on Friday said there are around 100,000 people trapped in the South Sudanese town of Yei, with no means to flee the violence in the area.
Yei, a town situated in Central Equatoria State about 150 kilometres southwest of Juba, has until now been largely spared from violent attacks that have plagued the country since war broke out in December 2013.
South Sudan descended into war in December 2013 after President Salva Kiir accused his then deputy Riek Machar of plotting a coup against his government. Machar denied the accusations but went ahead to mobilize a rebel force to fight the government.
The UNHCR in a statement reports that more than 30,000 people have been displaced into Yei from surrounding areas, following deadly attacks and massive looting of property. They joined several thousand other displaced from nearby Lainya County.
The agency says that up to 60,000 town residents who remain in Yei have no means to leave and are now in as much need as those displaced by the conflict.
The security situation in Yei deteriorated rapidly after renewed conflict broke out in Juba in early July and came to a head earlier this month, forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes.
This is the first time that the population in Yei – primarily farmers living on commercial and subsistence agriculture – has become a direct target of violence.
