UN rights chief warns of 50,000 civilians at risk in South Sudan

PanARMENIAN.Net - The UN human rights chief says up to 50,000 civilians in South Sudan's Upper Nile region are at imminent risk of human rights violations as government troops close in, The Associated Press reports.

Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said Thursday, May 4 that civilians in Aburoc town have nowhere to go. Many recently fled a military attack on nearby Kodok town.

Many in Aburoc are ethnic Shilluk and have faced a sharp rise in government attacks as South Sudan's civil war continues.

Zeid says military commanders on both sides show little regard for protecting civilians.

Separately, the UN humanitarian affairs agency says roughly 100,000 civilians have been displaced after a government offensive in the Jonglei region.

Army spokesman Santo Domic Chol did not comment on fighting in either location but said government attacks on civilians "didn't make sense."