In this photo taken Monday, Oct. 12, 2015, an unidentified man with a gun stands watch over displaced people, who have taken shelter from fighting, in a rebel-held part of Leer county, in Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press
JUBA, South Sudan (AP) - Eighty civilians, including 57 children, were killed in just one county in war-torn Unity state between October 4 and 22, according to a group of humanitarian organizations monitoring civilian casualties in South Sudan.
Twenty-nine of the children drowned after running into swamps to hide from attacks in Leer County. There were reports of widespread use of sexual violence, including more than 50 rape cases, said the Protection Cluster, representing 60 local and international organizations.
Kuong Kuony, the rebel's commissioner for Leer County, accused government troops of launching attacks on rebel positions, burning civilian houses, and looting livestock.
South Sudan's military spokesman, Col. Philip Aguer, said Saturday that he had no reports of fighting in Leer County.
The U.N. and human rights groups have documented widespread abuses against civilians, including rapes and killings by government soldiers and their militia, in Unity state this year.
Fighting persists despite a peace deal signed in August.
The latest incidents took place following a brief takeover of Leer town by rebel forces on October 2. Government forces pushed the rebels out later that day, the Protection Cluster said. Government forces then attacked numerous locations across the county, chasing civilians into swamps, according to many survivors who spoke to AP in Unity state during and after the attacks.
"As a result of this new wave of violence, it is estimated that nearly 1,200 children are unaccompanied and separated in southern and central Unity State," the Protection Cluster said.
South Sudan has been at war since December 2013 as government forces loyal to President Salva Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, battle rebels led by his former deputy, Riek Machar, a Nuer. The fighting has often been along ethnic lines.
In this photo taken Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2015, displaced people live in a camp of makeshift tents at Kok island, where around 900 people have taken shelter from fighting, in Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press
In this photo taken Monday, Oct. 12, 2015, displaced people bathe, wash, and drink at Kok island, where around 900 people have taken shelter from fighting, in Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press
In this photo taken Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015, a man uses a wooden pole to push a canoe carrying a reporter through a swamp, as the man makes the return journey to Kok Island after ferrying displaced families fleeing fighting in that area, in Leer County in Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press
In this photo taken Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015, a displaced woman and her children ride in a wooden canoe through a swamp, where the thick reed marshes protect against attacks, as they flee from Kok Island in Leer county to Nyal in Panyijar county, a trip that costs $20 and many cannot afford, in Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press
In this photo taken Monday, Oct. 12, 2015, a displaced woman on Luth island, near Kok Island, shows a handful of ground up water lily bulbs which she uses for flour, in Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press
In this photo taken Monday, Oct. 12, 2015, some of the around 900 displaced people who have taken refuge sleep under only mosquito nets in the open because there are not enough tents, in Kok Island, Unity State, South Sudan. Kok Island in Unity State has become a place of misery, with hundreds of war-weary people reaching there to seek shelter from the violence, just some of the more than 2 million displaced by South Sudanâs civil war, which continues despite a peace accord signed in August. (AP Photo/Jason Patinkin)
The Associated Press