Jihadi Groups and Humanitarian Access

In South Sudan’s civil war, both the government and the SPLM/A‑IO opposition are weaponising humanitarian aid—denying access to aid in opponent‑held areas, using food deliveries as bait to lure civilians into attacks, stealing or diverting food and medicine, and pressuring NGOs to relocate or withdraw from rebel‑controlled territory. The mass execution in Pankor after an aid‑registration invitation illustrates how assistance can be turned into a tool of violence, while millions of civilians face worsening hunger an

This pattern shows how humanitarian access can be manipulated by armed actors, underscoring the need for robust actor mapping, negotiation memory, and compliance mechanisms before entering access agreements. It highlights the risk that aid may be instrumentalised by parties to a conflict, making it essential for responders to preserve institutional knowledge of past negotiations and to secure community consent to prevent the exploitation of assistance.