UN aid chief warns of possible ‘full-scale famine’ in South Sudan

Lead

The United Nations’ humanitarian chief has warned that South Sudan is at risk of slipping into “full-scale famine and collapse” as intensifying fighting and blocked aid efforts push the country deeper into crisis. In a briefing to the UN Security Council on Friday, Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that “hunger across South Sudan is tightening its grip,” with emergency levels of food insecurity expected in all 10 states during the lean season, which lasts until the end of July.

Fletcher’s warning came amid reports of escalating violence between government and opposition forces, which has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and cut off access to vital humanitarian assistance. According to Al Jazeera, Fletcher told the council that he feared his next briefing would speak of famine, citing looting of humanitarian compounds and destruction of nutrition centres in areas around Akobo in Jonglei State, where more than 140,000 people were in “dire need of help.”

Coverage comparison

Reporting on the crisis has been broadly consistent across outlets, though the emphasis and framing have varied. Al Jazeera’s coverage focused on the UN’s famine warning and the risk of “full-scale famine and collapse,” with both of its articles leading with Fletcher’s statements. Africa News, which produced three separate reports, ran with slightly different angles: one highlighted the denial of aid to displaced people in Nyatim village, another summarised the Security Council briefing, and a third focused on the surge in hunger. All sources cited the same core figures, including the estimate that more than 7.5 million people will need food assistance this year, but they differed in the level of detail provided on specific incidents and statistics.

The Associated Press, whose reporting was carried by Africa News, provided the most detailed account of the Nyatim incident, describing how aid workers were blocked from delivering emergency relief despite reports of dozens of deaths, including some from apparent starvation. This account was absent from Al Jazeera’s coverage, which instead concentrated on the broader UN briefing and the political dynamics between the government and opposition forces.

Key claims

The warning of possible famine is supported by multiple sources. Fletcher told the Security Council that South Sudan is at risk of “full-scale famine and collapse,” a statement reported by both Al Jazeera and Africa News. The underlying data is consistent across outlets: more than 7.5 million people will need food assistance this year, with emergency levels of food insecurity expected in all 10 states during the lean season. According to Africa News, UN figures indicate that four counties in Jonglei and Upper Nile are now at risk of famine, with 2.2 million children under five expected to suffer from acute malnutrition.

A separate figure, cited by Africa News, puts the number of people facing severe hunger at around 7.9 million, or almost two-thirds of the population. This estimate was presented by acting Agriculture Minister Lily Albino Akol during the release of a joint food security report compiled by the government, the UN, and humanitarian organisations.

The conflict’s impact has been severe. The UN Security Council was briefed on Friday, with Anita Kiki Gbeho, head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), reporting a 40% increase in deaths and injuries in 2025 compared to 2024. According to Africa News, a quarter of a million people have fled their homes since December, and 1.35 million people have lost access to healthcare, with many of these figures attributed to the fighting concentrated in Jonglei State.

The Nyatim incident, reported by the Associated Press via Africa News, describes a situation where displaced people who took refuge in a swamp-encircled village were denied aid by government authorities. Aid workers, including Doctors Without Borders and the World Food Programme, reported being blocked despite numerous engagements with local and national authorities. As one aid worker put it, “Meanwhile, people are eating leaves and roots to survive.” This account is not yet independently verified by other outlets, but it aligns with broader concerns about humanitarian access.

Perspectives

The crisis is widely attributed to the breakdown of the 2018 peace deal and the renewed fighting between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and those aligned with Riek Machar, who was suspended as first vice president and placed under house arrest for alleged subversion last year. Opposition forces and authorities blame each other for blocking humanitarian access, and civilians are caught in the middle.

From the government’s perspective, the resurgence of violence is a response to opposition attacks, with Machar’s coalition seizing military outposts in Jonglei State in December, prompting a retaliatory military campaign. Government officials have not publicly commented on the aid blockage allegations, but the pattern of denying access to contested areas is part of a broader strategy of controlling humanitarian operations, as reported by the Associated Press.

The UN and humanitarian organisations view the situation as a man-made catastrophe exacerbated by funding shortfalls and lack of political will. The UNMISS base in Akobo is set to close due to reduced budgets, a decision Gbeho described as a “dilemma we collectively face.” The US embassy’s senior assistance coordinator, Charles Vetter, said the transitional government’s continued involvement in conflict is displacing civilians and preventing national resources from reaching essential public services, adding that obstruction, interference, and theft are undermining aid work.

Temporal context: The 2018 peace deal ended a five-year civil war that killed an estimated 400,000 people, but the agreement has since frayed. The current escalation began in December, with opposition forces seizing outposts, followed by government strikes in January and February. The humanitarian situation is expected to worsen during the lean season, which lasts until the end of July.