Two children lost their lives in a deadly attack that tore through Mengo village in Jalimo Boma, Kajo-Keji County of Central Equatoria State on Sunday morning.
The attack, which broke out at 6:30 AM, destroyed at least 15 households and displaced 75 people, most of whom are women and children.
According to Kenyi John Joseph, the press secretary at the office of the commissioner of Kajo Keji, the victims, an 8-month-old girl and a 16-year-old boy, were shot and thrown into flames allegedly by the National Salvation Front (NAS).
The displaced families were given some relief by neighbors who provided cassava for their survival.
However, no official aid had arrived by the following day.
"The government is today (Monday) sitting down with the partners in the area to discuss this issue so that they could really help because this is an emergency that needs immediate rescue," John told The Radio Community in an interview.
He stated that Kajo Keji faces significant logistical challenges due to poor infrastructure.
“We have some partners, like IOM, MSF, and some others. Kajo Keji is a landlocked county. There are no roads that connect Kajo Keji to Juba. The roads are not passable,” he explained.
“Most of the people, for those who have money, use a flight to come here, and most of the programs that are supposed to be implemented in Kajo Keji are implemented in Yei.”
He also noted that, despite ongoing displacement in Kajo-Keji, the region has not received significant humanitarian assistance since people began returning home voluntarily.
"This is the first of its kind, but all this time when displacement is happening in Kajo Keji, there is nothing like any humanitarian assistance that has reached the county," he added.
With the village home to around 2,000 residents, the community now faces a severe humanitarian crisis.
On Sunday, during a visit to the scene, David Lisi Christopher, commissioner of Kajo-Keji County, urgently called on humanitarian organizations to provide immediate assistance.
Efforts to reach NAS for a comment have been unsuccessful.