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UN assessing impact of Ugandan rebel violence on Congolese civilians

UN assessing impact of Ugandan rebel violence on Congolese civilians

MONUSCO peacekeepers on patrol in the DRC
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is evaluating the impact of atrocities committed by a notorious Ugandan rebel group against Congolese civilians.

The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has been terrorizing the Haut Uélé area of Orientale province in north-east DRC in recent months.

The UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC), along with partner agencies, visited affected areas from 16-17 January to help them set up an appropriate humanitarian response.

In Faradje, the team assessed the damage to property and spoke to those remaining in the town following the deadly LRA attacks, noting the need for protection and psychosocial assistance for civilians.

“We have been abandoned for three weeks, at the mercy of the LRA, with no security or humanitarian assistance,” said Faradje resident Ephraim Kabuli. “This is negligence on the part of the public authorities in relation to their responsibilities.”

Exact numbers of killings, abductions and displacements are not known, but according to the most credible estimates from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the LRA violence has left 900 people dead and uprooted 130,000 others, with more than 8,000 Congolese taking refuge in Southern Sudan.

Several other areas are at risk of fresh attacks by LRA rebels, who are on the run from the forces of the DRC, Uganda and Southern Sudan who launched a joint military operation last month.

MONUC said that members of the LRA, a group notorious for abducting children for troops and sex slaves, are desperate to survive and have stepped up their slaughter of Congolese civilians.

Last week, the Security Council issued a press statement strongly condemning recent attacks carried out by the LRA and emphasized that those responsible must be brought to justice.

Council members demanded that the members of the LRA cease all attacks on civilians immediately, and urged them to surrender, assemble, and disarm.