Fighting in eastern DRC kills about 7,000 people since January, PM says
Suminwa, a UN Human Rights Council member, warned that “the security situation in eastern DRC has reached alarming levels” in a message to the UN in Switzerland on Monday.
About 3, 000 deaths were reported in Goma, the capital of the eastern DRC’s North Kivu province, the prime minister said.
More than 2,500 bodies were buried without being identified, and 1,500 were still in morgues, according to her.
Suminwa stated that there are a significant number of civilians among the deceased.
Since January, the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group has captured swaths of the eastern DRC, including the key cities of Goma and Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province.
The group’s rapid offensive has prompted concern from world leaders, including UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who recently warned that the fighting could “push the entire region over the precipice”.
Rwanda has refuted claims made by the DRC, the UN, and Western governments that it supports rebels with troops and weapons.
During Monday’s address in Geneva, Suminwa urged the world to act and to impose “dissuasive sanctions” on Rwanda amid mass displacement and reports of summary executions.
She said, “It is impossible to describe the cries and screams of millions of victims of this conflict.”
Guterres added that the country’s current state was “a deadly whirlwind of violence and horrifying human rights abuses.”
“The sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC must be respected”, the UN chief said. “As more cities fall, the risk of a regional war rises. It’s time to silence the guns”.
After first capturing Goma for the first time last month, rebel fighters took control of Bukavu about a week ago.
About 40, 000 people have fled the violence to neighbouring Burundi over a two-week span, the UN said on Friday.
The M23 is one of more than 100 armed groups fighting for control of the eastern DRC’s trillions in mineral wealth.
Source: Aljazeera
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