UN Peacekeepers Stand Firm Against South Sudan Evacuation Order
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan has publicly declared it will not comply with a direct government order to shut down its operational base in Akobo. This town, a significant opposition stronghold located near the Ethiopian border, has become a sanctuary for tens of thousands of refugees displaced by the ongoing civil conflict.
Military Ultimatum and UN Defiance
On Friday, the South Sudanese army issued a sweeping directive ordering UN peacekeepers, alongside non-governmental organisations and civilians, to vacate Akobo entirely. This order preceded a planned military assault on the town. However, the UN mission has firmly refused to withdraw. In an official statement, it committed to maintaining a protective presence for civilians and emphasised that the safety and security of its personnel must be fully respected at all times.
The mission confirmed it is engaging intensively with national, state and local stakeholders regarding this contentious directive. Anita Kiki Gbeho, the mission chief, issued a stark warning: Any military operations in and around Akobo gravely endanger the safety and security of civilians.
Escalating Conflict and Humanitarian Crisis
The backdrop to this confrontation is the severe escalation of South Sudan's civil war. The fragile 2018 peace agreement collapsed approximately a year ago, reigniting hostilities. A dramatic surge in violence occurred in December 2025 when opposition forces captured several government outposts in northern Jonglei state. Although a government counter-offensive repelled these forces a month later, it resulted in the displacement of over 280,000 people.
Many of these displaced individuals have sought refuge in Akobo, where a small contingent of UN peacekeepers is stationed. Fearing the imminent government assault, humanitarian organisations evacuated their staff over the weekend, triggering a mass exodus of the local population.
Dire Conditions for Fleeing Civilians
Local officials report that civilians attempting to flee face extreme danger and critical shortages of essential supplies. Dual Diew, the Akobo County health director who has fled to Ethiopia, revealed that 84 wounded patients were left at the local hospital. We have most of them with us here now, he stated, noting a severe lack of medicine and basic nursing equipment.
The medical humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders (MSF) was forced to evacuate its staff from Akobo on Saturday. Christophe Garnier, the head of MSF in South Sudan, reported that their hospital was subsequently looted and their office ransacked. People in Akobo must now either flee without protection or remain at risk of being killed, while losing access to healthcare and other essential services, he lamented.
International Diplomatic Pressure
In response to the crisis, the three Western nations central to the South Sudanese peace process—the United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway—sent a joint letter to President Salva Kiir on Monday. The letter urgently called for the revocation of the army's evacuation order. It warned that proceeding with the offensive on Akobo would lead to further deaths, displacement and suffering for the South Sudanese people.
This standoff underscores the deepening humanitarian catastrophe in South Sudan and the critical, yet increasingly precarious, role of international peacekeeping forces in protecting vulnerable civilian populations caught in the crossfire of a renewed and brutal conflict.
