Fighting Spreads in Eastern Congo
By VOA News
06 November 2008
Rebels and government forces have clashed for a third straight day in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a day ahead of a major summit aimed at ending the conflict.
Officials with the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo said Thursday's fighting took place in the town of Nyanzale, in North Kivu province.
Rebels led by General Laurent Nkunda strengthened their control of a nearby town, Kiwanja, on Wednesday, fighting off pro-government Mai Mai militia. Witnesses said Kiwanja is deserted Thursday after large numbers of residents fled the combat.
Aid agencies are scrambling to reach and feed thousands of people displaced by the recent fighting.
DRC President Joseph Kabila and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon are among the leaders set to attend the emergency summit on the eastern Congo conflict, taking place in Nairobi on Friday.
Also scheduled to attend is Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who many see as a key to ending the conflict. Mr. Kagame is widely believed to wield a strong influence on Nkunda's rebels.
General Nkunda says his forces are protecting the minority Tutsi population in Congo against Rwandan Hutu fighters who entered the region after Rwanda's 1994 genocide.
New clashes between the DRC government and Nkunda erupted in late August, following the collapse of a January peace deal. Nkunda's forces launched an offensive two weeks ago that brought them to the outskirts of North Kivu's capital, Goma.
The U.N. said more than 250,000 people have been displaced from their homes since the new clashes began.
It said the total number of people displaced in North Kivu has now topped one million. The province and nearby areas have remained volatile and prone to clashes between militia groups five years after the end of Congo's civil war.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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