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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
DRC: Tens of thousands of IDPs flee fighting in Katanga
KINSHASA, 6 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - Some 49,000 civilians who have fled fighting between the Congolese army and Mayi-Mayi militia in the northern province of Katanga are living under very difficult conditions, according to an official of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
"We need clothing, plastic sheeting, kitchen utensils, soap and other things," said Anne Edgerton, the OCHA spokeswoman in Kalemie, a town in Katanga Province, on Friday.
She said nearly 120,000 people in the region had fled their villages since the government launched an operation to disarm the militia groups on 15 November 2005.
Humanitarian organisations have also received reports of similar dire conditions for IDPs in the territory of Malembankulu, but they have not yet carried out an assessment.
Figures for the displaced were obtained after a recent evaluation mission by humanitarian agencies in the territories of Pweto, Mitwaba and Bukama, where the army is pursuing Mayi-Mayi militia.
The Mayi-Mayi also attacked IDP camps in Bukama Territory on 1 December 2005, forcing populations that had already been displaced to flee again.
The militiamen, who often burn entire villages after plundering and raping women as well as children, were once allies of the government in its attempt to repulse Rwandan troops in eastern Congo.
[ENDS]
This material comes to you via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but May not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2006
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