Violence in South Sudan forces thousands of civilians to flee: UN

United Nations, Dec 8 Violence in South Sudan's Upper Nile State has forced many people to flee the country or hide in swamps, a UN spokeswoman said.

"According to local responders, at least 75 per cent of the newly displaced are women and children," said Stephanie Tremblay, an associate spokeswoman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"This surge of new arrivals puts additional pressure on the already limited capacity of our partners to provide services to support them."

Peter Van der Auweraert, the UN's interim humanitarian coordinator in South Sudan, strongly condemned the ongoing violence, which has displaced more than 9,000 people, reports Xinhua news agency.

More than 2,300 displaced people fled to the Malakal protection site since the start of the crisis in August.

"The US and its humanitarian partners are working to provide critical supplies such as food, access to water, sanitation, hygiene and healthcare facilities," said Tremblay.

"However, the ongoing insecurity is hampering our ability to deliver assistance to thousands of people."

She said some humanitarian assessment missions were postponed. In some areas, violence resulted in the relocation of humanitarian workers and the looting of humanitarian facilities and supplies.

The UN Refugee Agency and its partners said they are scaling up their response despite a severe funding shortfall.