Unreported World

We had travelled to South Sudan to investigate an upsurge in fighting. More people have been killed there this year than in the country's notorious war-torn region of Darfur.

Almost as soon as we landed, it was clear that the country is in the midst of a humanitarian crisis, but violence is not solely to blame. Failed rains, as well as the increasing conflict, have put South Sudan on the brink of a famine.

Our first stop was the town of Akobo, in one of the country's most inaccessible states - a vast, wild marshland called Jonglei where most of the fighting has been happening. As we landed we could see thousands of emaciated people waiting under the shade of the trees by the airstrip for food aid to arrive.

The scene in the local hospital was even more desperate. Bony-armed mothers clung listlessly to tiny children with distended bellies, their hair turned orange from severe malnutrition and slack skin hanging off their tiny limbs. Most were too weak with hunger to cry. Some had developed sores in their mouths, making it painful to imbibe water, never mind food.

If not treated, all these children will die. Even if they are treated in time, they could already be left permanently brain damaged or stunted by the malnutrition.

However, wherever in the country my producer, Julie Noon, and I were, we were sure to return to our 'tukuls' (traditional Sudanese mud huts) to be served up a spread of meat stews, rice and vegetables, usually flown in from Kenya. Every mouthful felt wrong.

Yet Sudan is one of Africa's biggest oil producing countries. In the last few years, South Sudan has made billions in oil revenues. Nearly all of Sudan's oil fields lie in the south of country. But the government spends 40% of its entire budget on the military, many claiming this is a sign that it is preparing itself for war.

South Sudan is officially in a period of peace. The civil war, between the mainly Muslim north and the Christian and animist south, was Africa's longest, lasting 22 years and claiming some two million lives. It was a complicated war fought over land, tribes, religion and resources. A peace agreement was struck in 2005, with the north accepting a referendum on independence for the south.

As the referendum looms ever closer - it is scheduled for 2011 - the fighting in the south is increasing. This has led some, including the President of South Sudan, to point the finger at old enemies in the north, accusing it of arming militias to fuel inter-tribal fighting, in a bid to destabilise the region. The north strongly denies this.

Whatever the reasons for the violence, it has taken a disturbing turn. Women and children are now being directly targeted in the fighting, and we visited hospital wards full of mothers and babies with gunshot wounds.

But it was the sight of starving children that will forever be imprinted on my mind.