South Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis Worsens Amid Rising Airstrikes and Shrinking Aid

November 29 2025 - The humanitarian situation in South Sudan is rapidly deteriorating, with aid agencies warning of escalating violence, soaring medical needs and shrinking international support.

Addressing journalists in Geneva on Friday, Florence Gillette, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in South Sudan, described the situation as “continually degrading,” citing a surge in casualties from both airstrikes and ground fighting.

Gillette revealed that the use of aircraft and crude barrel bombs had increased markedly in recent months, forcing hundreds of thousands from their homes. “Nearly 1,000 weapon-wounded patients have been treated in ICRC-supported facilities this year alone , the highest figure since 2018,” she said. “In the past eight years, we have conducted more than 25,000 surgeries on 5,000 persons wounded by weapons.”

Fighting is now affecting seven of South Sudan’s ten states, where aerial attacks and ground clashes have killed and injured many while pushing close to half a million people into displacement. Humanitarian pressures are further intensified by the influx of around 1.2 million people fleeing conflict in neighbouring Sudan, many of whom are surviving in extremely harsh conditions.

Gillette warned that aid organisations are struggling to meet the rising needs. Approximately 57% of South Sudan’s population is now facing food insecurity, while the country’s health system, heavily reliant on international aid, has experienced what she called “a drastic reduction” in capacity. “Funding continued to decline, and donor interest has decreased in recent years,” she said.