Displaced Abyei Residents Returning Home

Residents of the disputed Abyei area who were displaced into South Sudan during last year’s incursion by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) have started returning to their residences.

Displaced Abyei Residents Returning Home
UN Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs in South Sudan Lise Grande at a past press conference in Juba. [Gurtong Waakhe]

 
JUBA, 22 June 2012 [Gurtong] - A statement by the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs indicated that a total of 8,936 displaced persons have so far returned home and are said to be coping with the situation on the ground.
 
The statement added that humanitarian partners are also planning the return of 30,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to Abyei in the next three months, adding that water and food is one of the challenges on the ground though agencies are scaling up efforts to avert a critical situation.
 
Humanitarian agencies have also started the delivery of some basic items such as emergency kits consisting of blankets, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, kitchen sets, plastic sheets and soap among other items to the returnees.
 
The statement added that lack of basic needs scare many from returning to their homes.
 
“People returning from Agok, at the southern end of the Abyei area said that most of the people displaced last year were still hesitant about returning because of Abyei town’s lack of basic health and education services,’ said the statement. 
 
“People coming from Warrap State appear even more cautious about returning, although some said they might decide to return after the current rainy season”, added the statement. 
 
The United Nations reported that at least 140,000 people were displaced from Abyei to South Sudan last year when SAF launched an offensive on the oil-rich region

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