26 Médecins Sans Frontières aid workers remain missing in South Sudan a month after the attacks

More than two dozen Doctors Without Borders workers remain missing a month after the attacks in South Sudan, the charitable medical organization reported. Two facilities operated by the group, known by its French acronym MSF, were attacked on February 3 in Jonglei state, northeast of the capital, Juba, where violence has displaced some 280,000 people since December. A hospital in the city of Lankien was bombed by government forces, according to MSF, while another medical center in the city of Pieri was attacked by unknown individuals. Both were in areas controlled by the opposition. The staff working in both facilities fled along with a large part of the local population to deeply rural areas where armed clashes and aerial bombardments continued.

We recommend reading:Paramilitaries reject Khartoum's proposal for a ceasefire and end of the war in Sudan

MSF said in a statement on Monday that “26 of the 291 colleagues working in Lankien and Pieri remain missing.” "We have lost contact with them due to the ongoing insecurity," he added. The lack of communication with your staff could be related to the limited network connectivity in much of the state. Staff members contacted described "destruction, violence, and extreme hardship." The fighting intensified drastically in December, when opposition forces captured several government positions in central-north Jonglei. In January, the government responded with a counteroffensive that regained most of the area it had lost. Displaced people in Akobo, a town controlled by the opposition near the border with Ethiopia, described the terrible violence perpetrated by government fighters. Many described the impossibility of finding food or water during days of walking to reach a safe place. The attacks on MSF facilities in Lankien and Pieri are part of a surge in violence against humanitarian personnel, supplies, and infrastructure, according to humanitarian organizations. MSF facilities have been attacked 10 times in the last 12 months. "This violence has had an unbearable impact not only on health services, but also on the very people who keep them running," said Yashovardhan, MSF's head of mission in South Sudan, who only uses one name.

You can also read:Egypt and the US coordinate actions to end the war in Sudan amid escalation

"Medical personnel should never be the target of attacks," he stated. "We are deeply concerned about what has happened to our colleagues and the communities we serve."