U.S. suspends aid in parts of South Sudan over interference

The United States government has suspended U.S. foreign assistance in Ayod County, Jonglei State, and is reviewing its assistance in Western Bahr el-Ghazal State, citing interference by South Sudanese officials, according to a statement released Thursday by the U.S. Embassy in Juba.

In the statement dated 8th January, 2026, the embassy said the U.S. government is also considering significant reductions in assistance to Western Bahr el-Ghazal State.

The actions were described as a response to South Sudanese officials “taking advantage of the United States instead of working in partnership” to assist the South Sudanese people.

The embassy said the decision is consistent with a December 11 statement by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs, which called on South Sudan’s transitional government to stop imposing illicit costs on those delivering assistance.

According to the statement, U.S. foreign assistance has been subject to continued abuse, exploitation, and theft by South Sudanese officials at national, state, and county levels. It cited an incident on January 2 in which the Ayod County commissioner detained an aid worker who refused an illegal request to surrender assets from a U.S. foreign assistance partner.

The statement also said that since November, the Western Bahr el-Ghazal State Minister of Health has prevented the transfer of pharmaceutical supplies between U.S. foreign assistance partners.

The embassy said transitional government officials have ignored repeated requests to release the supplies.

The United States has provided more than $9.5 billion in foreign assistance to South Sudan since the country’s independence in 2011, the statement said.

The U.S. government called on the transitional government to take immediate remedial steps, including holding accountable officials who have interfered with or imposed illicit costs on U.S. foreign assistance.

The statement said the Trump Administration maintains a zero-tolerance policy for the theft and diversion of life-saving assistance.