An SPLM-N team headed by Yasser Saeed Arman disclosed that they held a meeting on Sunday with Haile Menkerios, the UN Secretary-General’s envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, on the situation of Sudanese refugees in South Sudan.

The conflict in South Sudan that broke out on 15 December between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and others loyal to the former vice president Dr. Riek Machar has resulted in wide-scale displacement and killings of citizens based on ethnicity.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Monday, the SPLM-N Secretary-General Yasser Arman stated they discussed with the UN envoy the current situation of the Sudanese refugees who are current living in South Sudan, saying about 230,000 refugees, mostly coming from SPLM-N controlled territories, are affected by the conflict in South Sudan.

Most Sudanese refugees in northern Unity and eastern Upper Nile states have not been directly attacked during the fighting between the South Sudanese parties, but they have been affected by economic disruptions and disruptions of the aid efforts.

Arman, who is also the SPLM-N chief negotiator at the ongoing peace talks in Addis Ababa, noted Haile Menkerios promised that he will convey the message of concern to the Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon.

He further revealed the United Nations will send a UN high-level delegation to contact the two warring parties in South Sudan and provide protection to the trapped Sudanese refugees.

Photo: A Mongolian UN soldier stands guard at the UNHCR compound in Yida, 16 March 2013 (Radio Tamazuj)