In eastern DRC, the UN is alarmed by a "steep rise" in violence

The east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has suffered a “steep upsurge” in violence since December 2022, with more than 700 civilians killed by militias, the UN Secretary General said on Monday March 27. .

“The security situation has deteriorated further in the three eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo [Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu] with a steep rise in violence perpetrated mainly by the Allied Democratic Forces [ADF ], the Cooperative for the Development of Congo [Codeco] and the M23”, described Antonio Guterres in his quarterly report on the country.

Ituri records the heaviest toll due to “an increase in killings committed mainly by the ADF, the Zaire group and Codeco”. Result, between December 1 and March 14: 485 civilians killed, including at least 82 women and 51 children, compared to 114 civilians killed during the previous three months.

In the different regions of North Kivu, the attacks perpetrated mainly by the ADF, the Mai-Mai groups and the M23 left more than 200 dead. In the Far North of this province in particular, the ADF are accused of killing 187 civilians, including 69 women and 20 children, in attacks between December 1 and March 15. In the Petit Nord, fighting continued between the Congolese army and the M23 which “extended its areas of control and occupation” and left 43 civilians dead.

“Hate Speech”

In South Kivu province, “foreign and local armed groups continued to commit violence against civilians”, killing 26 from December 1 to January 31.

The Secretary General is also concerned about human rights violations in the country, mainly by armed groups. Thus, “at least” 628 people were subjected to extrajudicial or summary executions (465 men, 111 women and 52 children), a “significant increase” mainly linked to the multiplication of deadly attacks by Codeco, ADF and M23 in North Kivu and Ituri.

Antonio Guterres is also concerned about the increase in “hate speech” exacerbated in particular by the violence of the M23 and the tensions between Kinshasa and Kigali. “I am also alarmed by the rising tensions between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda,” he said, calling on both sides to “settle their differences through dialogue.”

On the other hand, the spokesperson for the Secretary General, Stéphane Dujarric, spoke to the press on Monday about an epidemic of cholera in North Kivu, with 1,800 suspected or confirmed cases between March 13 and 19, against 1,000 the previous week, and 6,200 since the beginning of the year.