The UN refugee agency Thursday condemned an attack by Rwandan Hutu rebels on a camp for displaced people in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo that has killed at least six people.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced it was evacuating its staff and temporarily suspending operations in the Rutshuru area of North Kivu province.
Eyewitness reported the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels started shooting indiscriminately at people inside the makeshift camp in the area after robbing aid workers late Wednesday morning. A total of 5,000 people were housed at the camp.
Media reports said at least six people were killed, possibly including two children, and 20 others, including two aid workers, from non-governmental organizations were wounded.
The attack was a "terrorist act," said Alan Doss, head of the UN peacekeeping mission (MONUC) and Secretary-General's Special Representative to the DRC. It was either a war crime or a crime against humanity, he said.
Doss said the MONUC would continue to support the Congolese authorities' efforts to restore state authority on the country's eastern region, which have been beset by continued violence in recent years, despite the end of its long-running civil war.
North Kivu is among the most volatile areas in the entire country, with thousands of displaced people living in the province. About a tenth of the group live in UNHCR-managed sites.
Source:Xinhua
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