Bentiu: The neat brown rectangle of an airstrip stands out against the vast expanse of floodwater all around — a crucial lifeline in this remote corner of South Sudan.
The landing strip in Bentiu has been carefully preserved with huge dykes against the waters that have added another layer of devastation to the world’s youngest country.
Alongside is a camp for some 200,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) who have endured multiple horrors — war in their own country and neighboring Sudan, and now years of flooding that has destroyed homes, schools, crops and infrastructure.
More than 700,000 people have been impacted by flooding across South Sudan, the UN’s humanitarian agency said recently, and worse floods could be coming next month.
In Bentiu in Unity State, one of the worst affected and most remote areas, a taskforce of Pakistani military engineers with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has constructed a five-meter-high (16-foot) wall around the IDP camp to keep the waters at bay.
Major Mohi Ud Din, head of the taskforce, said they were working “day and night” to keep the wall intact and had managed to build more than 120 kilometers (75 miles) of dykes.
Most crucial is the airstrip. With roads frequently cut off by the floods, it is often the only way to receive food and supplies.
Tap Mach Dhieu, 43, fled to the camp from his home in nearby Panyijiar County in 2014, during the civil war.
He receives rations from the World Food Programme but must then hire a canoe to go in search of firewood.
“We survive this way,” he told AFP.
“People would not be here if (the UN) did not make this dyke. The lifeline of the people is UNMISS, not the government.”
He despairs at officials, who he said have done little to help since his home was destroyed and cows stolen during the 2013-2018 civil war.
“The flood situation is a natural disaster, but looting cows and burning houses is man-made and that’s the government’s responsibility,” he added.
David Garang, a UN health volunteer, said disease was a major problem.
“All the latrines are flooding into the shelters. There’s no cleaning and no collecting of garbage. The situation is dire. What I see in the near future is an outbreak of many diseases,” he said.
Although it still provides services, UNMISS has handed over day-to-day running of the camp to the government, which does not fill Garang with confidence.
“If UNMISS leaves, the situation will not be OK,” he said. “The presence of UNMISS is 100-percent good for the safety of the community,” he said.
There has been a peacekeeper base in nearby Leer County since 2015, currently staffed by a Ghanaian contingent.
They provide security but also items like schoolbooks, fresh water and vaccines for animals.
“There are a lot of problems and without them, it would be difficult,” said a Leer County official, Stephen Taker.
But with waters still rising, there is still plenty of work to do.
“Our problem is that roads are already cut by the water,” said Taker. “We’re working by hand to make sure vehicles can move in the coming month.”
Battling to keep flood waters at bay in South Sudan
https://arab.news/c8sxx
Battling to keep flood waters at bay in South Sudan
- More than 700,000 people have been impacted by flooding across South Sudan
Palestinian health ministry says 4 killed in Israeli West Bank strike
RAMALLAH: The Palestinian health ministry said Thursday that an Israeli air strike on a car killed four Palestinians and wounded three near the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem.
The ministry announced that the Palestinians were killed “as a result of the (Israeli) bombing of a vehicle in Tulkarem camp,” which the Israeli army did not immediately confirm to AFP.
Turkiye, Iran leaders at Muslim summit in Cairo
- Relations between Egypt and Iran have been strained for decades, but diplomatic contacts have intensified since Cairo became a mediator in the war in Gaza
CAIRO: The leaders of Turkiye and Iran were in Egypt on Thursday for a summit of eight Muslim-majority countries, meeting for the first time since the ouster of Syria’s president Bashar Assad.
Turkiye historically backed the opposition to Assad, while Iran supported his rule.
The gathering of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation, also known as the Developing-8, was being held against a backdrop of regional turmoil including the conflict in Gaza, a fragile ceasefire in Lebanon and unrest in Syria.
In a speech to the summit, Turkiye’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for unity and reconciliation in Syria, urging “the restoration of Syria’s territorial integrity and unity.”
He also voiced hope for “the establishment of a Syria free of terrorism,” where “all religious sects and ethnic groups live side by side in peace.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian urged action to address the crises in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, saying that it is a “religious, legal and human duty to prevent further harm” to those suffering in these conflict zones.
Pezeshkian, who arrived in Cairo on Wednesday, is the first Iranian president to visit Egypt since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who visited in 2013.
Relations between Egypt and Iran have been strained for decades, but diplomatic contacts have intensified since Cairo became a mediator in the war in Gaza.
Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi visited Egypt in October, while his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty traveled to Tehran in July to attend Pezeshkian’s inauguration.
Ahead of the summit, the Iranian top diplomat said he hoped it would “send a strong message to the world that the Israeli aggressions and violations in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria” would end “immediately.”
Erdogan was in Egypt earlier this year, and discussed with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi economic cooperation as well as regional conflicts.
Established in 1997, the D-8 aims to foster cooperation among member states, spanning regions from Southeast Asia to Africa.
The organization includes Egypt, Turkiye, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Malaysia as member states.
Iraq begins repatriating Syrian soldiers amid border security assurances
DUBAI: Iraq has begun the process of returning Syrian soldiers to their home country, according to state media reports on Wednesday.
Lt. Gen. Qais Al-Muhammadawi, deputy commander of joint operations, emphasized the robust security measures in place along Iraq’s borders with Syria.
“Our borders are fortified and completely secure,” he said, declaring that no unauthorized crossings would be permitted.
Muhammadawi said that all border crossings with Syria are under tight control, stating: “We will not allow a terrorist to enter our territory.”
Turkiye won’t halt Syria military activity until Kurd fighters ‘disarm’
ISTANBUL: Turkiye will push ahead with its military preparations until Kurdish fighters “disarm,” a defense ministry source said Thursday as the nation faces an ongoing threat along its border with northern Syria.
“Until the PKK/YPG terrorist organization disarms and its foreign fighters leave Syria, our preparations and measures will continue within the scope of the fight against terrorism,” the source said.
Hamas says Israeli strikes in Yemen ‘dangerous development’
GAZA: Palestinian militant group Hamas said Thursday that Israel’s strikes in Yemen after the Houthi rebels fired a missile at the country were a “dangerous development.”
“We regard this escalation as a dangerous development and an extension of the aggression against our Palestinian people, Syria and the Arab region,” Hamas said in a statement as Israel struck ports and energy infrastructure in Yemen after intercepting a missile attack by the Houthis.
