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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

DRC-RWANDA: Kigali denies involvement in North Kivu fighting

NAIROBI, 12 June 2003 (IRIN) - The Rwandan army has denied taking part in fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo between two local rival militia groups, the Rwandan News Agency reported on Wednesday.

In the three days of fighting that began on Friday in North Kivu Province, the Rassemblement Congolais pour la democratie (RCD-Goma) captured three localities from its rival RCD-Kissangani-Mouvement de liberation, or RCD-K-ML, led by Mbusa Nyamwisi.

Rwandan army spokesman Maj Jill Rutaremara said Nyamwisi's forces had often accused the Rwanda army of fighting alongside the RCD-Goma.

"Rwanda has not had any troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo since last year," Rutaremara said.

However, one of Nyamwisi's bodyguards, "Commander" Jacque Hagi, told IRIN on Wednesday that the Rwandans used helicopters and tanks to support seven RCD-Goma battalions take the localities of Kanyabayonga, Mbingi and Alibongo.

"We are trying to fight off the helicopters and tanks," he said.

The fighting has caused a new exodus of an unknown number of civilians south towards Butembo, an official of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) told IRIN.

"There were already 140,000 war displaced in the localities of Lubero before this last fighting," Megan Scott, the OCHA's information officer in Goma, said.

OCHA Kinshasa reported that the displaced were in need of food, drinking water and medical help.

Meantime, the Italian-based Missionary Service News Agency (MISNA) reported that peaceful demonstrations took place on Thursday in towns in North Kivu, aimed at drawing attention of the international community to the fighting.

"The entire city of Butembo took to the streets this morning and an identical demonstration should also be under way in Beni," Melchisedec Paluku Sikuli, the bishop of Butembo and Beni, told MISNA.

Themes: (IRIN) Conflict

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