HIGHLIGHTS
Armed group seizes 15 tons of food supplies en route to Lasu settlement - UNHCR and partners were unable to deliver food to the refugees in Lasu settlement after armed men stopped a humanitarian convoy on 11 August at Mitika, some 26 km south of Yei, and seized 15 tons of sorghum. Staff from UNHCR, ACROSS, Action Africa Help International and South Sudan’s Commission for Refugee Affairs were held hostage for nearly five hours before being released and instructed to return to Yei. Whilst continuing to engage with the local authorities regarding guarantees of safety for humanitarian workers and goods, UNHCR is concerned that malnutrition levels may rise among Lasu refugees, given that the last general food distribution in Lasu took place in late June.
UNHCR joins headcount of IDPs in Juba Protection of Civilians (POC) sites - In Juba, UNHCR and other agencies joined an IOM/ACTED-‐led headcount of IDPs in the POC sites 1 and 3 on 13 August, with UNHCR contributing 12 staff and wristbands. Preliminary results put the number of IDPs to 37,247 (including 8,661 in POC 1 and 28,586 in POC 3), compared to a previous estimate of 54,000 people. Registration and food distribution are expected to begin shortly. The headcount will help ensuring inclusion of all IDPs in existing assistance programmes and services.
UNHCR concludes protection assessment of IDPs in urban Juba - In Juba, UNHCR and partners concluded a 5-‐day protection assessment on 10 August, aimed at gathering and analyzing information on the protection needs of urban IDPs, including on Sexual and Gender-‐Based Violence. The assessment team recorded numerous accounts of looting of property, sexual and physical violence, separation and abduction of children, targeted killing of civilians, theft and mass movement of people towards villages and refugee camps in Uganda. This assessment is part of UNHCR’s increased response to SGBV in coordination with UNFPA.
UNHCR registers 385 displaced families for assistance in Upper Nile - In Maban, UNHCR led an inter-‐agency assessment mission to Dengaij on 13 August to follow up on reports of thousands of civilians displaced from the clashes between government and opposition forces at Liang on 3 August.
As a result, 385 IDP families currently sheltering in a school were registered for assistance. Distribution of food and non-‐food items will follow shortly.UNHCR reaches out to 800 vulnerable returnees in Jonglei - In Akobo, UNHCR partner INTERSOS provided non-‐food items to 183 extremely vulnerable returnee families (810 individuals).
UNHCR assists more than 1,000 displaced families in Western Equatoria - In Yambio, UNHCR and World Vision International distributed food and non-‐food items on 9-‐13 August to 1,009 IDP families from Lii Rangu, with UNHCR contributing plastic sheeting (800), buckets (456), sleeping mats (1,000) and mosquito nets (1,000).