James Akin Majak, an employee of World Fishon based in Warrap State’s North Tung County, was shot dead in an ambush on the road over the weekend, and Warrap State Information Minister William Wole Meum attributed the crime to revenge killing.
On 6 November, another aid worker, an unnamed dietitian, was also killed in the Greater Pibor District Administration.
“The U.S. Embassy joins the Acting UN Humanitarian Coordinator in condemning the brutal killing of a South Sudanese aid worker in the Greater Pibor Area Administration on November 6,” the statement said.
“We also strongly condemn the attack on 11 November in Warrap state in which a humanitarian worker was killed.
The Transitional Government of South Sudan has a responsibility to create conditions that ensure the safe provision of humanitarian assistance. We extend our condolences to the families of the two victims.”
The Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan, Mary Helen Ferney, had earlier condemned the incident, noting that the latest attack occurred on November 6 and killed a South Sudanese national aid worker contracted by an international NGO.
“I condemn in the strongest terms the recent attack on humanitarian workers on 6 November, when a South Sudanese national aid worker contracted with an international NGO was killed,” Ferney said.
“The attack occurred while a team of aid workers was on a field trip to respond to a suspected measles outbreak in the Greater Pibor District Administration, one team member left on a community visit and was brutally killed,” she said.
Ferney said she was appalled by the continued violence targeting humanitarian workers and their assets, hampering the work of humanitarian actors across the country.
“For many years in a row, South Sudan has been the most dangerous place for aid workers.
According to OCHA statistics, four aid workers have been killed since the beginning of 2023 in South Sudan in the line of duty. In 2022, nine aid workers were killed while providing life-saving assistance, compared to five in 2021.
Since 2013, 142 humanitarian workers have been killed in the line of duty.
South Sudan has been the most dangerous place for aid workers for several years, according to a report in Humanitarian Aid Results/Workers’ Security – a classification that applies to the number of attacks, casualties and deaths.
Source: Al-Taghyeer
