“Crude political manoeuvre”: MSF slams gov’t over aid blockade in Jonglei

JUBA – Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has sharply criticised the South Sudanese government over what it described as a deliberate blockade of humanitarian access to parts of Jonglei State, warning that the restrictions amount to a “crude political manoeuvre” with potentially fatal consequences for civilians.

In a statement issued this week, MSF said humanitarian flight restrictions imposed since December 2025 have halted all aid flights to opposition-held areas, including Lankien, Pieri, and Akobo, severely disrupting medical operations in some of the state’s most remote and conflict-affected communities.

“Imposing restrictions on humanitarian aid and preventing people from accessing healthcare is a crude political manoeuvre,” said Abdalla Hussein, MSF Desk Manager for South Sudan. “Ultimately, it is civilians who pay the price. This must stop immediately.”

MSF warned that the access blockade has prevented the delivery of essential medical supplies, the rotation of medical staff, and the evacuation of critically ill patients. As of 29 January, at least 23 patients in Lankien and Pieri were in urgent need of medical referrals, with no viable means of evacuation due to the suspension of flights.

“Patients will die if the government continues to block humanitarian and medical access in Jonglei,” Hussein cautioned.

The organisation said the restrictions have forced it to evacuate staff from Lankien and Akobo and scale down medical services in several locations, including Pieri, to emergency and lifesaving care only. On 29 January, MSF teams in Pieri were compelled to flee their medical facility amid an imminent threat of armed conflict, discharging most patients and escaping with emergency medical kits alongside local residents.

MSF also raised alarm over what it described as inflammatory rhetoric from some authority figures, warning that such statements risk encouraging mass violence and forced displacement of civilians. The organisation urged the government to publicly reaffirm its commitment to civilian protection and to respect international humanitarian law.

Currently, MSF is the sole healthcare provider for approximately 250,000 people in Lankien and Pieri, and an additional 112,000 people in Akobo. The organisation warned that nearly 400,000 civilians could be left without any access to healthcare if humanitarian access is not urgently restored.

“Ongoing conflict and displacement in Jonglei are further increasing the vulnerability of civilians,” said Gul Badshah, MSF Operations Manager for South Sudan. “This is creating new and urgent humanitarian needs on top of already limited healthcare services.”

MSF further cautioned that the current dry season presents a critical window to resupply medical facilities while roads remain passable. Failure to do so, it warned, could have catastrophic humanitarian consequences in the coming months.

The organisation, which has operated in South Sudan since 1983, remains one of the country’s largest medical humanitarian actors. In 2025 alone, MSF reported providing more than 830,000 outpatient consultations, inpatient care for over 93,000 patients, including 12,000 surgeries, and screening more than 107,000 children for malnutrition.

MSF called on the South Sudanese government and the international community to urgently prioritise humanitarian access in Jonglei State and ensure predictable conditions for lifesaving operations, warning that continued restrictions risk deepening an already dire humanitarian crisis.