On 24 May 2016, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that civilians have suffered abuses at the hands of government soldiers in and around Wau, South Sudan. The attacks were said to have included killings, rapes, tortures, arbitrary detentions, and burnings and lootings of houses.HRW noted that the abuses have surged since the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) deployed soldiers, mostly ethnic Dinka, to the region for government counterinsurgency operations against Fertit rebels. Together with local civilians and authorities, HRW documented a series of abuses committed by the soldiers, which included civilians being tortured, executed on the basis of ethnicity, or detained for an unreasonable amount of time or without access to legal assistance. HRW added that the abuses have extended to surrounding villages including Moimoi, Ngumba, and Khorkanda.HRW mentioned that civilians in and around Wau have been displaced in a quest to escape the violence and abuses. HRW also alleges that neither the army nor the national government officials have taken any action to investigate, address, or resolve the situation, despite local authorities, including the Wau state governor Elias Waya Nyipuoch and community leaders, raising the alarm . The situation has recently grabbed international attention, such that the European Union (EU) has placed an arms embargo on South Sudan and visa bans on many South Sudanese officials for human rights abuses and killings of civilians by the all parties involved. The international community has demanded that the South Sudanese government investigates the situation, prosecute the abusers for human rights violations, and cease the abuses. To read more, visit:
https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/05/24/south-sudan-civilians-killed-tortured-western-region
http://www.salon.com/2016/05/23/eu_condemns_parties_in_south_sudan_for_human_rights_abuses/
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-southsudan-conflict-abuse-idUSKCN0YF2A4
