"Tension Rises Between DRCongo troops, UN peacekeepers"

AFP

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November 23, 2008

November 23, 2008

     Government troops and UN peacekeepers consulted in a confrontation Sunday, as rebels welcomed the succes of buffer zones in eastern DR Congo.  In the province of Nord-Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, government soldiers approached a convoy of soldiers from MONUC, UN peacekeeping operation, removing 10 militants who were on their way to Goma.  The MONUC was taking  the Mai Mai from Rwindi to Goma as part of an ongoing disarmamend and rehabilitation process.  It was reported the government soldiers suspected them of being members of Laurent Nkunda's rebel National Congress for the Defense of the People.  At first, the MONUC refused to hand the men over as a tense standoff broke out.  Deitrich reports an angry crowd formed, who began insulting the peacekeepers as they pelted them with stones and rocks.  One witness said the MONUC did not wish to hand the men over so the soldiers went into the trucks and pulled them out.  While a number of other witnesses reported that the men were made to sit on the ground and were angrily beaten by the soldiers.  Much concern has been risen over the plight of more than 250,000 people have been displaced since fighting erupted in August between rebels and government forces.

     -Chris Pumphrey

"Congo Rebels Advance; Protesters Hurl Rocks at U.N. Compound"

Jeffrey Gettleman and Neil Macfarquhar

New York Times online

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/28/world/africa/28congo.html?scp=4&sq=DR%20Congo&st=cse

October 27, 2008

November 23, 2008

     Hundreds of protesters hurled rocks and stones at a UN compound in eastern Congo in frustration and anger that peacekeepers had not halted rebel advance.  Jaya Murthy, Unicef spokesperson, said intense fighting between government troops and rebel forces spawned a wave of internally displaced people, with tens of thousands evacuating battle zones.  People of upwards to 250,000 have been driven from their homes ever since August, with the collapse of a peace agreement between the government and rebels under the control of Laurent Nkunda.  The resignation of Lt. Diaz, appointed to lead UN's Congo mission, is expected to increase tenstion between African forces serving with peacekeeping organizations.  Rebel leader Nkunda has rejected multiple cease-fires by the UN.  He recently threatened to take his war all the way to the Congo's captial, Kinshasa. Nkunda's forces seized a second army base in the past couple weeks.  His forces are better trained and much better equipped than the government troops, who are known for their rusty weapons and for fleeing when faced with a real threat.  Violence in eastern Congo has continued for several years now, despite the presence of the United Nations' largest peacekeeping forces, with more than 17,000 troops.

     -Chris Pumphrey

"DR Congo Civilians in Dire Straits"

Press TV: FTP/HAR

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November 21, 2008

November 23, 2008

     Soldiers continue to loot, shoot and rape troubled Congolese refugees as UN is preparing to send additional peacekeepers.  UN refugee spokesman William Spindler said he fears the civilian population could be caught in crossfire should fighting continue in Geneva Friday afternoon.  Republic of Congo President Denis Sassou-Nguesso said the UN's proposal of 3,100 peacekeepers would not be enough to halt the rebel forces.  67,000 refugees have already flooded the Kibari village, which stands very close to soldier-rebel clashes.  Rapes are going on, with twenty have been reported at a healt center in Goma, with God knows how many have gone unreported.  Renewed fidghting broke out after General Nkunda and the DRC government violated a cease-fire treaty in January designed to end clashes five years after the war officially ended, which has resulted in 250,000 already having fled their homes and the number continues to grow.  Friday, DR Congo's President Joseph Kabila gave hints to the idea that he may be ready to speak directly to rebel leader Nkunda - a demand that which he has continually refused in the past.

     -Chris Pumphrey

"DR Congo Rebels Say Hutu Militia Heading to Evacuated Zone"

AFP

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November 21, 2008

November 23, 2008

     Friday rebels say a Hutu milita they say is allied to government forces is headed to an area the rebels evacuated earlier in the week.  The rebels told reporters the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), who have been in the DR Congo ever since the commencement of the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, are looking to join forces with the Mia-Mia militia, who are also tied allies to the government.  Nkunda's National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP) withdrew from Kinyandoni this past week to show goodwill toward UN peace efforts as the FDLR are descending upon it.  The rebels urge MONUC to take over security in Goma the area they evacuated to prevent future occupation.  Nkunda says he is defending fellow Tutsis against the Hutu, who have been accused in the Rwandan genocide that killed 80,000 people, mainly Tutsis.  So far upwards to 250,000 people have been displaced ever since the fighting has erupted in August this year.

     -Chris Pumphrey

"UN Envoy Holds Talks with DR Congo's Rebel Leader"

AFP--Goma, DR Congo

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November 29, 2008

November 30, 2008

     UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo said talks with rebel leader Laurent Nkunda helped advance peace moves in the DR Congo over Saturday. Discussion were "able to advance the cause of peace," Obasanjo told reporters.  The closed-door meeting between the former Nigerian president, Obasanjo, and Nkunda took place early Saturday afternoon in Jomba. However, afterwards Nkunda continued to hold out for direct talks with Congo President Kabila.  Nkunda said negotiation was "the good way," saying "if there is not negotiation, there is war."  It has been reported by Obasanjo that Kabila has not ruled out talks between the government and Nkunda's National Congress for the Defense of the People.  As Nkunda has reportedly been dismissing recent allegations that which include his knowledge of fighting in Masisi between his forces and the Mai-Mai as well as UN accusations of war-crimes perpetuated by his fighters earlier in the month.

     -Chris Pumphrey