Nairobi - "Jerusalem" dot com - (AFP) - At least 72 people have been killed in seven weeks, some of them slaughtered or burned, in Unity State, southern Sudan, where ethnic violence has escalated, as confirmed by the United Nations Mission in this country.

The massacres took place between 17 February and 7 April in Leer and included acts of sexual violence, according to the mission.

"72 civilians were killed and at least 11 were injured," the mission said in a statement.

"The mission strongly condemns the spread of sexual violence and killings, including acts of beheading or burning of civilians, and attacks on humanitarian workers," the statement added.

On sexual violence, Mission Director Nicholas Haysom said, "We must do everything we can to ensure that victims... get the justice they deserve and receive the care and support they need."

In April, terrified villagers told AFP they spent days holed up in swamps in Leer district while gunmen set fire to their homes and stole their livestock.

The renewed violence in South Sudan raises fears of a return to conflict in this East African country, which descended in 2013, two years after it gained independence, into a five-year civil war that left nearly 400,000 dead and millions displaced.

The war officially ended in September 2018 with a peace agreement that stipulates the principle of power-sharing. But that agreement has been largely unimplemented, more than two years after the formation of a national unity government that included President Salva Kiir and his archenemy, now Vice President Riek Machar.

The country is witnessing acts of violence and an economic crisis as a result of accelerating inflation, causing cases of hunger.

According to the United Nations, nearly nine million people, out of more than 11 million, will need international aid this year due to a deep food crisis and renewed violence.

On Monday, Haysom called on "national and local authorities to take immediate action to reduce tension and prevent further escalation and reprisals."