Thousands of children have fled a spike in violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in recent weeks and sought refuge in neighbouring Angola to avoid recruitment by militia, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Friday.

Many of the children are sick and in need of urgent assistance, UNHCR says, amid ongoing fighting in DRC’s Kasai region between government and opposition forces that began in August 2016.

Political unrest is growing, with elections due before the end of this year, after a deal allowing President Joseph Kabila to remain in office was struck last December.

Here’s UNHCR’s Babar Baloch speaking to Daniel Johnson.

Duration: 4'34"