Nye kampe har de seneste dage skabt 60.000 flere fordrevne i det afrikanske kæmpeland. Problemet forværres yderligere, som oprørerne nærmer sig provinshovedstaden Goma. UNICEF er dybt bekymret over konsekvenserne for især børn i området.
DR CONGO 19. November 2012: Fresh clashes in the eastern part of DR Congo between fighters with the rebel 23 March Movement (M23) and the national army have forced thousands of displaced men, women and children to flee again.
This addsto what United Nations agencies say is an already dire humanitarian situation in which over 2,4 million people are displaced due to conflict.
An estimated 60.000 people have been displaced as the M23 – composed of soldiers who mutinied from the national army in April – launched new attacks in recent days in North Kivu province.
The rebels are said to be advancing towards the provincial capital of Goma, despite the efforts of the congolese armed forces, known by the French acronym FARDC, and peacekeepers serving with the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DR Congo (MONUSCO).
“This new escalation in fighting in and around Goma, and elsewhere in the Kivus, adds to what are already monumental humanitarian needs in the DR Congo,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said in an update Monday.
The latest attacks by the M23 have been condemned by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council, with both calling for their immediate cessation.
Some capacity for refugees
According to OCHA, humanitarian agencies have identified three sites in Goma which can accommodate 30.000 people and where they will be able to receive civilians displaced by the renewed fighting.
This includes displaced persons hosted in the Kanyaruchinya camp, located about 10 kilometres north of Goma, as well other residents. The most urgent priorities are protection; water, sanitation and hygiene; health; and food.
“Humanitarian agencies have some emergency capacities to respond to these needs,” said OCHA. “However, these capacities could be overstretched if the security situation deteriorates further in and around Goma.”
Concern about children
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said Monday it is deeply concerned about the deteriorating situation and its impact on children. “The renewed conflict is putting children and their families at risk, leaving them exposed to physical harm and mental distress,” the agency stated.
“UNICEF is particularly concerned about the psychological trauma faced by children, in addition to the risk of cholera outbreaks following a recent upsurge of the disease among IDPs in Kanyaruchinya,” it added.
On Sunday and Monday, the agency provided one ton of high-energy biscuits and medicine for 500 unaccompanied children in Goma’s Don Bosco Centre. Also, a UNICEF partner, PAMI, is organizing points to register and reunify unaccompanied minors with their parents.
OCHA added that the renewed clashes are having serious effects in other areas in North and South Kivu.
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