Eyewitnesses describe ‘Pandemonium’ as violence breaks out in Malakal

Last week’s fighting around Malakal, in the Upper Nile State, displaced thousands and left many dead. Eyewitnesses report that hundreds of decomposing corpses still lay strewn all over the town.

World Vision’s specialist on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) Paul Skayem, along with water engineer, Paul Otto, were in Malakal during the attack, they described what transpired as horrific:

“Last Tuesday at 7.30 in the morning, there were shouts from armed men who were charging towards our camp. Pandemonium broke out. Some of us fled into the bunker, while others were petrified and remained within their tents”, Paul Otto noted.

He says South Sudanese nationals within the UNMISS compound, who had been displaced by earlier fighting, either took refuge in the bunker alongside agencies, or fled the compound, with some killed or injured.

Those made homeless by the fighting now face a growing crisis, most food and essential supplies, together with many personal belongings, were looted during the exchange of fire.

“The shooting and detonation of bombs went on for two to three hours, as we sat in great fear within the bunker, along with colleagues from other agencies including United Nations staff members,” Paul Otto says.

A military checkpoint that was stationed approximately one kilometer from the UNMISS compound, where a tank had been based, was completely destroyed. Decomposing bodies of soldiers in uniform now litter the area.

“The water pipeline was destroyed. The UNMISS compound and the adjacent Protection of Civilians area, where displaced people were living and World Vision and other agencies have been working, was without water for three days,” Paul Skayem says.

Initial relief efforts by humanitarian agencies to reach 28,000 people, who’d sought sanctuary in the towns UNMISS compound, were halted amidst the heavy fighting between government and opposition forces. The fighting also severely hindered efforts to reach the hundreds of thousands spread across Malakal town and other locations within the Upper Nile State.

Many of the displaced reportedly remain in hiding along river banks, behind shrubs, in trenches or any other landscape that provides suitable cover. Others who’d sought refuge in Malakal town within the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church compound, or at Malakal Boys High School and at the Malakal Teaching hospital, have since fled.

When the fighting subsided and calm returned to the area, World Vision’s response team swung into action, reaching out to those who survived the attack.

“Our staff joined other agencies and immediately repaired the destroyed water system. People within the UNMISS compound now receive 2,015 litres of water per day. It’s still very much inadequate, but it’s making a big difference,” Paul says.

The World Vision response team is currently involved in relief food distribution within the UNMISS compound.

“We, along with other agencies, are assessing the food situation. Together with MSF, we are evacuating patients and those injured from Malakal town,” World Vision Response Manager, Philippe Guiton noted.

“Over the last two days, World Vision has distributed relief supplies within the Malakal compound to about 9,000 people, with a total of 72.256 metric tons of food” Philippe added, stressing that resources remain thin on the ground.

With the situation in Malakal temporarily subsiding, reports received by World Vision indicate that fighting has now erupted near Rom, 80 kilometres north of Malakal town, World Vision has expanded its relief and Non Food Items (NFI) distribution to the area.

Philippe says that the initial plan was for the response team to help those within Malakal town, then extend the relief response to about 10,000 displaced people within the Rom area, but the fighting that is reported in that region will likely hamper those efforts.

Conditions on the ground remain challenging. Many local staff members cannot help certain communities, as the conflict has taken on an ethnic dimension. Some international staff members from an African nation were also targeted, after their President took an open position on the internal fighting.

Over 800,000 South Sudanese have been internally displaced, with another 145,000 fleeing to neighbouring countries. World Vision has appealed for USD 50 million to help respond to the growing humanitarian crisis, while the United Nations has made an appeal for USD 1.3 billion to avert a humanitarian catastrophe.