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"After 25 years of presence, MONUSCO will definitively leave the DRC no later than the end of 2024,” Keita said at a media briefing in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa. The end of the mission will not be “the end of the United Nations” in the country, she added. The U.N. and Congolese officials worked together to produce a disengagement plan for “a progressive, responsible, honorable and exemplary withdrawal of MONUSCO,” Congolese Foreign Minister Christophe Lutundula said. Modalities have also been set for “the gradual transfer of tasks from MONUSCO to Congolese government,” Lutundula added. The violence is occasioned by rampant mass killings and has displaced nearly 7 million people.

Persons: Bintou Keita, MONUSCO, ” Keita, Christophe Lutundula, ” Lutundula, —, “ Organizations: Central, United Nations, East Locations: KINSHASA, Congo, Congolese, Central African, South Kivu, North Kivu, Ituri, Kinshasa, MONUSCO, East African

☆ Conflict uproots record 6.9 million people in Congo -IOM
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Paul... Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreJOHANNESBURG, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Conflict and escalating violence have uprooted a record 6.9 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, mostly in the east of the country, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Monday. Years of rebel conflict and recurrent natural disasters have helped fuel one of the largest humanitarian crises in the world. Most of those forced to flee their homes live in the eastern provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri and Tanganyika, according to the data collected by the United Nations. In North Kivu alone, up to one million people have been displaced due the ongoing conflict with a Tutsi-led rebel group M23, IOM said. The most recent escalation of the conflict has uprooted more people in less time like rarely seen before," said Fabien Sambussy, IOM's head of mission in Congo.

Persons: Paul, Fabien Sambussy, Anait, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: United Nations Organization Stabilization, Democratic, REUTERS, International Organization for Migration, United Nations, IOM, Thomson Locations: Democratic Republic of, Congo, Djugu's, Ituri's province, Democratic Republic of Congo, JOHANNESBURG, North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Tanganyika, Congolese

☆ Eyeing Election, Congo President Eases Some Terms of Eastern Military Rule
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Ange KasongoKINSHASA (Reuters) - With little over two months until a general election, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi on Thursday said some conditions of military rule in conflict-hit eastern provinces would be eased, partly to encourage participation in the vote. Last year, U.N. experts and Amnesty International said security had deteriorated since the state of siege was imposed. The insecurity has caused the displacement of about 6 million people, the United Nations' top representative in Congo said in September. On Thursday, the U.S. embassy said it was concerned about an increase in violence in North Kivu. "The crisis in eastern DRC requires a political and not a military solution," it said in a statement.

Persons: Ange Kasongo, Felix Tshisekedi, Alessandra Prentice, Grant McCool Organizations: Amnesty International, Amnesty, United Nations Locations: Ange Kasongo KINSHASA, North Kivu, Ituri, Congo, U.S, DRC

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The humanitarian situation in conflict-wracked eastern Congo has deteriorated alarmingly in the past 18 months with 8 million people in urgent need of assistance and women and girls subjected to sexual violence on a massive scale -- just in three provinces, a senior U.N. official said Tuesday. M23 rose to prominence in 2012 when its fighters seized Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city on the border with Rwanda. Recently, attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces, which is believed to have ties to the Islamic State extremist group, have also spiked along with intercommunal violence. The scale of suffering and insufficient funding have left humanitarian workers in the impossible situation every day of deciding whether to prioritize water, shelter or medical support for the constant stream of newly displaced people. And one result of the overwhelming needs is that thousands and thousands of children aren’t able to go to school, she said.

Persons: Edem Wosornu, “, ”, Wosornu, Gabriella Waaijman, and.one, aren’t, Waaijman, ” Waaijman Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, Allied Democratic Forces, State, London, International Locations: Congo, U.N, North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Rwanda, Goma, Congo’s

CNN —At least 46 people, including 23 children, were killed and six were wounded at a displacement camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to network of observers based in the country. The Kivu Security Tracker said the incident happened in the Djugu territory following an attack by the militia group ‘Codeco,’ on Monday. “At least 46 civilians were killed and six wounded on Monday 12 June at the #Lala displaced persons camp (Djugu territory, #Ituri) following an incursion of #CODECO,” Kivu Security said on Twitter. Kivu Security added that the attack was the deadliest experienced in the area in more than a year. “MONUSCO has reinforced its security presence in the area, in liaison with the provincial authorities,” a statement by MONUSCO chief said.

Persons: ’, “, Monusco ’, “ MONUSCO, MONUSCO, LUCHA Organizations: CNN, Democratic, ” Kivu Security, Twitter, Kivu Security, UN, ADF Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, Kivu, Ituri, ” Kivu, North Kivu, Congolese, Kasindi

☆ Rebel attacks deepen displacement crisis in Congo's Ituri
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Paul Lorgerie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Semire said members of the Hema herding community started to abandon Drodro in mid-March ahead of a rumoured advance by CODECO. "There are repeated attacks - this delays the return of people here, because it creates doubts," he said. Its population has nearly doubled to 65,000 since the beginning of 2023, according to camp representative Samuel Kpadjanga. The presence of fighters in the forests and fields around the camp makes attacks on those who venture out a regular occurrence, Kpadjanga said. My life is safe, but they took everything from me, my scythe, my money," she lamented back in a hut at Rhoe camp, as a toddler peeked at her from the doorway.

☆ UN paints Congo helicopters orange to protect against attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

World Food Programme/Handout via REUTERSKINSHASA, April 20 (Reuters) - The United Nations has painted bright orange its two white helicopters providing humanitarian relief in eastern Congo in an effort to protect them from militia attacks by distinguishing them from other aircraft. Last year, the U.N. recorded 293 security incidents that affected relief missions to east Congo, resulting in the death of nine humanitarian workers. The U.N. Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) unveiled the two repainted World Food Programme helicopters this week. Their colour is meant to avoid confusion with the white ones used by the U.N. peacekeeping mission MONUSCO, which have been attacked in the past. Eight peacekeepers were killed when a MONUSCO helicopter on a reconnaissance mission crashed in the midst of rebel fighting in March last year.

☆ U.N. paints Congo helicopters orange to protect against attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

☆ Islamist rebel attack kills around 20 in eastern Congo
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KINSHASA, April 8 (Reuters) - Suspected Islamists killed around 20 people in an attack on a village in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, authorities said on Saturday. "We counted about 20 dead on Friday in the village of Musandaba," said the military administrator of Beni territory, Colonel Charles Omeonga. An army spokesman in the North Kivu region where the attack took place, Anthony Mwalushay, said the assailants used machetes "to avoid confrontation with the army". The attack took place in one of two conflict-hit provinces where Congo replaced civilian authorities with military administrations more than a year ago in an attempt to halt the violence. This week, the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo condemned another massacre committed by the ADF in neighboring Ituri province, which it says killed 30 people.

☆ East Congo militants kill at least 22 in string of attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENI, Democratic Republic of Congo, March 19 (Reuters) - Suspected militants killed at least 22 people in a string of attacks across the Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern Ituri and North Kivu provinces overnight Saturday, officials and activists said on Sunday. The incidents were the latest in a stream of continuous violence that has plagued eastern Congo for years, despite increasing interventions from the country's army and U.N. peacekeepers. At least 12 people were killed Saturday in simultaneous raids across several villages in Ituri province. Congo's government declared a state of siege in North Kivu and Ituri in 2021, in an attempt to stem rampant militia violence in the country's vast mineral-rich east. "Even when we are under siege, the enemy still surprises us every day," said Delphine Malekani, an activist in North Kivu.

☆ Congolese NGOs decry mining in main refuge of 'Africa's unicorn'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Erikas Mwisi Kambale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Industrial activities are supposed to be banned in the 13,000 square kilometers of the reserve in northeast Democratic Republic of Congo. Aerial photo evidence shows mining has persisted, the civil society groups said at a joint news conference to mark the international day of the okapi. The NGOs blamed a Chinese company called Kimia Mining, which has previously been accused of flouting a ban on river-dredging in Ituri province and other mining regulations, according to a 2016 report by a UN Group of Experts. There was no available contact information to reach Kimia Mining for comment. Congo is currently at loggerheads with conservationists and scientists over its plan to open other parts of its rainforest and peatlands to oil and gas drilling.

☆ Eastern Congo attacks kill civilians, hit major power plant
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DAKAR, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Suspected rebels have killed civilians and damaged a major hydropower plant under construction in Virunga National Park in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the park operator said on Wednesday. Tuesday's attack, which included the use of artillery, came from the direction of positions held by the M23 rebel group, the park service said in a statement. It is just one of many armed groups fighting in eastern Congo over minerals and land. It was not clear how many people died in the Virunga Park attack, which also appeared to target a 28-megawatt hydropower plant at Rwanguba, which the park says will be the largest energy project in eastern Congo when it comes online in two years. A generator and concrete structures inside the plant were hit, but at this stage the construction timeline is not in jeopardy, the park said.

☆ Conflictul şi pandemia au adus foametea la un nivel record în RD Congo
▼ + stars: | 2021-04-06 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +1 min

Aceste cifre arată că RD Congo concentrează în momentul de faţă cel mai mare număr de oameni de pe plan mondial care au nevoie de ajutor alimentar de urgenţă, au subliniat într-o declaraţie comună Programul Alimentar Mondial (PAM) şi Organizaţia ONU pentru alimentaţie şi agricultură (FAO).Pe lângă conflict şi pandemie, la creşterea acestei cifre a contribuit şi faptul că ultimele studii au cuprins o populaţie mai extinsă decât cele anterioare. "Pentru prima dată, am putut analiza vasta majoritate a populaţiei, ceea ce a contribuit la stabilirea nivelului real dezastruos al insecurităţii alimentare din RDC", a explicat reprezentantul PAM în ţara africană, Peter Musoko. "Această ţară ar trebui să-şi poată hrăni populaţia şi să exporte surplusul. Nu putem avea copii care merg la culcare flămânzi şi familii care nu-şi permit să mănânce în fiecare zi", a adăugat oficialul ONU.Cele mai afectate zone sunt în provinciile estice Ituri, Kivu de nord şi de sud şi Tanganyka, precum şi provincia centrală Kasai, toate marcate de conflictul dintre rebeli şi forţele guvernamentale.Localnicii care au fost nevoiţi să se refugieze din calea conflictului şi s-au întors acasă şi-au găsit recoltele devastate, unii supravieţuind doar cu buruieni sau cu frunze de manioc, conform ONU.Violenţele comise de miliţii persistă de decenii la rând în Congo, mai ales în regiunile de graniţă din est cu Burundi, Rwanda şi Uganda, în pofida sfârşitului războiului civil, în 2003.Dintre cei 27,3 milioane de congolezi care suferă de foame, circa 6,7 milioane sunt consideraţi a se afla în faza de "urgenţă", ultima fază înainte de foamete, conform unei analize a iniţiativei IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, Clasificarea integrată a fazelor securităţii alimentare), scrie agerpres.ro.

Persons: Peter Musoko Organizations: RD Locations: RD Congo, ONU, flămânzi, Ituri, Kivu de, Tanganyka, Kasai, Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda

☆ În Elveţia va fi creată o rezervă globală de vaccinuri anti-Ebola
▼ + stars: | 2021-01-12 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +2 min

O rezervă mondială de urgenţă conţinând 500.000 de doze de vaccin anti-Ebola va fi creată pentru a permite guvernelor lumii să reacţioneze cu rapiditate în timpul unor potenţiale epidemii viitoare, au anunţat marţi reprezentanţii Alianţei pentru vaccinuri Gavi, informează AFP. Stocul de vaccinuri anti-Ebola va conţine doze produse de compania farmaceutică americană Merck. O purtătoare de cuvânt de la Gavi a declarat pentru AFP că va fi nevoie de "câţiva ani" pentru ca stocul de 500.000 de doze să fie constituit. Dezvoltarea vaccinului anti-Ebola a fost accelerată după cea mai gravă epidemie cauzată de această boală extrem de ucigaşă, care a început în decembrie 2013 în Guineea şi s-a răspândit apoi în Liberia şi Sierra Leone. Epidemia a făcut peste 11.300 de victime dintr-un total de aproape 29.000 de cazuri înregistrate, potrivit Organizaţiei Mondiale a Sănătăţii (OMS), care a declarat încheierea epidemiei în martie 2016.

Organizations: americană Merck, Agerpres, Sierra Leone, OMS Locations: Basel, Elveţia, Statelor, Geneva, Nord Kivu, Republica Democrată Congo, Guineea, Liberia, Sierra, Equateur

☆ A fost creată o rezervă mondială de 500.000 de doze de vaccin anti-Ebola
▼ + stars: | 2021-01-12 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +2 min

Ţările cu venituri mici vor avea acces la această rezervă mondială în regim de gratuitate, au precizat reprezentanţii acestei organizaţii internaţionale, al cărei sediu general se află la Geneva. Aceleaşi ţări vor beneficia şi de un sprijin pentru costurile operaţionale generate de organizarea unui program de vaccinare. "Creând un stoc de 500.000 de doze de vaccin anti-Ebola, accesibil tuturor acestor ţări, putem să contribuim la prevenirea deceselor şi să punem capăt, cu rapiditate, epidemiilor din viitor", a declarat Seth Berkley, directorul general al Gavi.Peste 300.000 de persoane au fost vaccinate în timpul epidemiilor de Ebola din provinciile Nord Kivu şi Ituri din Republica Democrată Congo. Boala se manifestă prin febră şi dureri musculare, urmate de greţuri, diaree, erupţii cutanate, hemoragii interne şi externe şi insuficienţă renală.În noiembrie 2020, Republica Democrată Congo a declarat încheierea celei mai recente epidemii de Ebola de pe teritoriul său, care a făcut 55 de victime în aproape şase luni în provincia Equateur. Peste 40.000 de persoane fuseseră vaccinate.

Persons: Seth Berkley, Seth Organizations: Sierra Leone.Epidemia, OMS, americană Merck Locations: Geneva, Nord Kivu, Republica Democrată Congo, Guineea, Liberia, Sierra, Statelor, Equateur

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