Tuesday, October 01, 2024

DRC recorded in 2023 its highest number of victims of sexual violence ever


01/10/24
Copyright © africanewsBrian Inganga/Copyright 2020 
The AP. All rights reserved.
By Rédaction Africanews and AP

Democratic Republic Of Congo

New data reveals that teams with Doctors Without Borders and the DRC's health ministry treated more than two victims and survivors of sexual violence every hour in the Democratic Republic of Congo last year.

To be precise, 25,166 victims of sexual violence sought care in 2023, the group said Monday (Sep. 30).

This figure is by far the highest number ever recorded by Doctors Without Borders also known as MSF in DRC.

It is based on data from 17 projects set up in five provinces with 4 located in the DRC's war torn east.

Victims who are mostly women and girls were treated in displacement camps near Goma, the capital of of the North Kivu province.

Residents of eastern DRC have suffered from armed violence for decades. More than 120 armed groups fight for power, land and mineral resources while others try to defend their communities.

Some armed groups have been accused of mass killings, rapes and other human rights violations. The violence has displaced some 6 million people in the east.

Earlier this week, Human Rights Watch said both Rwanda and Congo’s army have killed displacement camp residents, committed rapes and obstructed aid.

The frightening trend has continued, with teams having treated 69 per cent of the numbers across all of 2023 in just the first five months of 2024.

M23 rebel group generates approximately $300,000 a month from mining-UN

Copyright © africanewsMoses Sawasawa/Copyright 2021 The AP. All rights reserved.
By Rédaction Africanews and AP Last updated: 10 hours ago

Democratic Republic Of Congo

A rebel group in Congo generates around $300,000 a month in revenue through its control of a mining area in the east of the country, a U.N. official said.

In April, the M23 — a rebel group with alleged links to Rwanda — seized the Rubaya mining area in eastern Congo, which holds deposits of a key mineral used in the production of smartphones and computers. Over 15% of the world's supply of tantalum, a rare metal extracted from coltan, comes from Rubaya, Bintou Keita, head of the U.N. mission in Congo, told the Security Council on Monday.

“Unless international sanctions are imposed on those benefiting from this criminal trade, peace will remain elusive and civilians will continue to suffer,” Keita said.

Tantalum is among the minerals that were identified earlier this year in a letter from Congo’s government questioning Apple about the tech company’s knowledge of “blood minerals” being smuggled in its supply chain.

The decadeslong conflict in eastern Congo has produced one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with more than 120 armed groups fighting for power, land and valuable mineral resources while others try to defend their communities. Some armed groups have been accused of mass killings, rapes and other human rights violations. The violence has displaced some 6 million people in the country's east.

M23, or the March 23 Movement, is a rebel military group mainly made up of ethnic Tutsis that broke away from the Congolese army just over a decade ago. They staged a large offensive in 2012 and took over the provincial capital of Goma near the border with Rwanda, the same city they are threatening again.

Congo alleges that Rwanda has been involved in war crimes in the east and U.S. and U.N. experts accuse it of giving military backing to M23. Rwanda denies the claim, but in February admitted that it has troops and missile systems in eastern Congo to safeguard its security, pointing to a buildup of Congolese forces near the border.

In July, U.N. experts estimated that between 3,000 and 4,000 Rwandan government forces are deployed in eastern Congo alongside M23, which has been making major advances.

Last week, a regional court in East Africa opened proceedings in a case filed by Congo against Rwanda, accusing it of violating Congo’s sovereignty and territorial integrity by sending troops to help rebels in the country’s east.

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