The South Sudanese government has demanded that the United Nations drastically scale back its peacekeeping mission in the country (UNMISS), including withdrawing 70 percent of its international peacekeeping forces (though not regional forces), grounding its helicopters, and closing its operating bases and civilian protection sites. The call should ring alarm bells as civilians in South Sudan face grave abuses.
The UN’s peacekeeping chief, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, warned the UN Security Council that gutting the peacekeeping force’s presence in the country would jeopardize the mission and its mandate to protect civilians. The UN has already begun to roll out plans to close some offices, reduce staff, and cut back on the number of deployed peacekeepers in the country due to a funding crisis.
The South Sudanese government has long resisted international scrutiny and obstructed UNMISS’ work. And scrutiny in South Sudan is more important than ever, as civilians need greater protection. In September, UNMISS reported a twofold increase in the number of civilian casualties by warring parties compared with 2024.
In March, Human Rights Watch reported how government forces carried out aerial attacks using improvised incendiary weapons in Nasir, Longechuk, and Ulang counties, all in Upper Nile state, killing at least 58 people and severely burning many others. The government’s airstrikes have hit civilian infrastructure, including a Doctors Without Borders-run hospital in Old Fangak, Jonglei state, in what the humanitarian organization called a “deliberate bombing.”
Clashes between government and opposition forces in parts of Western Equatoria, Central Equatoria, and Upper Nile states have also led to killings, forced displacement, sexual violence, and grave violations against children by all sides, among others abuses.
South Sudan’s humanitarian crisis also remains dire. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification reported that 1.3 million people in South Sudan need urgent food aid, while residents of Nasir and Fangak are at risk of famine. The government has restricted aid access to conflict-affected areas controlled by opposition forces.
The UN Security Council should press South Sudan to end ongoing access restrictions and ensure UNMISS can safely operate. The council should also reject revisions to operational capacity and staffing that would dilute the mission’s independence and weaken early warning, protection, and human rights monitoring functions. The stakes for civilians who have borne the brunt of abuse by warring parties couldn’t be higher.