UN reports surge of refugee arrivals in South Sudan from Sudan

UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Friday reported a surge in new arrivals at South Sudan's border with Sudan.

This comes as the war in Sudan spreads to the south and east of the country, amid fierce fighting in Wad Medani over the past week, said OCHA.

In recent days, the number of people arriving in South Sudan via the Joda crossing point has almost tripled -- with a daily average of 1,000 people crossing last week, compared to nearly 3,000 on Thursday. Meanwhile, more than 6,000 people are reportedly still waiting on the Sudanese side of the border to cross, with thousands more people expected to join that queue in the coming days, it said.

OCHA said the United Nations and humanitarian partners continue to scale up support for new arrivals in South Sudan at the Renk Transit Centre, where more than 23,000 people are being hosted despite crowded conditions. Across the country, some 4.6 million people have received some form of humanitarian assistance and protection services as of September. This is despite funding shortfalls, as well as ongoing violence and threats against humanitarian personnel and assets.

For 2024, the humanitarian community in South Sudan is appealing for 1.8 billion U.S. dollars to assist 6 million people. To do so, timely and sufficient funding for the response will be critical, said OCHA.