South Sudanese seek shelter at UN compounds in Juba – in pictures

Civilians arrive to take refuge at the UN Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (Unmiss) compound by Juba airport. Fighting has continued in the capital, Juba, since Sunday night. South Sudan only became independent two years ago, after decades of civil war with Khartoum, and has struggled to maintain a stable government. In these latest clashes, thousands of people have fled the fighting and many more are hiding in their homes Photograph: Rolla Hinedi/UNMISS/AP

Civilians crowd inside the UN compound on the outskirts of Juba. The UN says the clashes have claimed hundreds of lives. A meeting of the security council in New York on Tuesday was told that the fighting was ‘apparently largely along ethnic lines’. Up to 20,000 people have taken refuge in the UN mission in Juba, according to the French UN ambassador and current president of the security council, Gerard Araud. He said the conflict had ‘the potential of a civil war’ between the two main ethnic groups, the Dinka and the Nuer. The South Sudan government has denied that there is an ethnic aspect to the conflict Photograph: Hakim George /Reuters

President Salva Kiir, right, addresses a news conference at the presidential palace in Juba on Monday after clashes between rival military factions. Following months of tension, the fighting broke out when the president sacked his deputy, Riek Machar, in July. Kiir blamed troops loyal to Machar for the violence and declared an overnight curfew in the capital. Kiir claims a group of soldiers supporting Machar tried to take power by force on Sunday night Photograph: Hakim George /Reuters

The information minister, Michael Makuei Lueth, addresses civilians on Tuesday outside the Unmiss compound on the outskirts of Juba. He said Machar, the former vice-president, was thought to have escaped with some troops. The government said it had arrested 10 leading figures, including former finance minister Kosti Manibe, former justice minister John Luk Jok, and former interior minister Gier Chuang Aluong. Many were members of the cabinet that was dismissed in July Photograph: Rolla Hinedi/UNMISS/AFP/Getty Images

Civilians take shelter at the Unmiss compound Photograph: Rolla Hinedi/UNMISS/REUTERS

Riek Machar, whose whereabouts are unknown, told the BBC on Wednesday: ‘There was no attempted coup.’ He said he was still in South Sudan and was not going to leave the country. He blamed Sunday's fighting on a conflict between members of the presidential guard, and said it spread across parts of Juba. He added that government troops used the incident to arrest some of his supporters, and that he escaped. ‘Someone wanted to frame me,’ he said. ‘I had to flee. They are hunting me down’ Photograph: PHILIP DHIL/EPA

An Unmiss medical team helps civilians at the Cambodian-run hospital in the UN compound near Juba airport Photograph: Rolla Hinedi/UNMISS/AFP/Getty Images

The government says it has full control of the capital and all other cities. The UK Foreign Office is withdrawing some of its embassy staff from Juba. There have also been reports of people fleeing clashes in Bor, about 150km north of Juba. The US state department is ordering all non-essential officials to leave the country, and is suspending normal operations at its embassy Photograph: Rolla Hinedi/UNMISS/AFP/Getty Images

Residents carry personal belongings as they walk down a street in Juba Photograph: Stringer/AFP/Getty Images

A woman washes her child inside the Unmiss compound. Up to 13,000 people have fled to the two UN compounds in the capital, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, said after talks with President Kiir Photograph: Julio Brathwaite/UNMISS/AFP/Getty Images

Civilians in the UN compound on the outskirts of Juba. The UN is urging the warring groups to refrain from violence Photograph: Hakim George/Reuters