Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

NEWSDESK

Thousands flee DR Congo into Congo-Brazzaville
04 Nov 2009 17:21:23 GMT
Source: Reuters
* Total of 13,000 have fled to Congo-Brazzaville

* About 7,000 have fled in past 24 hours - state radio

* Violence linked to fights over farming, fishing rights

By Christian Tsoumou

BRAZZAVILLE, Nov 4 (Reuters) - About 7,000 people fleeing ethnic violence in the north of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have crossed the border into neighbouring Congo Republic in the past 24 hours, state radio said on Wednesday.

A total 13,000 people have now taken refuge in north-eastern Congo-Brazzaville since fighting erupted last week in the village of Dongo in Equateur province in DRC, a United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) spokesman in Kinshasha told Reuters.

At least 47 policemen were killed last Friday as they intervened in a dispute among two tribes fighting over farming and fishing rights. The violence is not related to fighting in Congo's east between government troops and Rwandan rebels.

"Several villages have been burned and dozens of people killed as a result of these clashes," one of the refugees told the Congo-Brazzaville official news agency.

The UNHCR has a joint humanitarian support mission with the government of Congo-Brazzaville to assist those displaced by the conflict.

DR Congo hosts the U.N.'s largest peacekeeping mission, with over 18,000 soldiers, but 90 percent of the force is based in Congo's eastern regions and there were no peacekeepers in the north when the violence took place. (Writing by George Fominyen; Editing by Mark John and Louise Ireland)


AlertNet news is provided by

Email this article       Send comments

Emergencies

•  Congo (Brazzaville) troubles

MORE >>

NGO latest

•  MSF Frontline Reports: October 2009
MSF - USA

•  Conventional Weapons Management and Disposal - global update
MAG - UK

•  Protecting the Most Vulnerable
CRS - USA

•  D.R. CONGO: 'I heard an explosion and ran out to find my son wounded'
MAG - UK

•  Food crisis in Sudan caused by drought and conflict
Caritas Internationalis

MORE >>

Latest news

•  Thousands flee DR Congo into Congo-Brazzaville

•  U.N. defends Congo role despite army killings

•  UNHCR airlifts emergency relief items for expelled refugees in Angola

•  Angola: UNHCR airlifts relief items for expelled refugees

•  UN cuts back aid for Congo army after killings

MORE >>
AlertNet news is provided by

Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   


Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Wed Nov 4 17:24:37 2009