UN Calls on DR Congo to Protect Civilians, Warns of More Violence

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo must ensure civilian protection in the wake of recent deadly raids on camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs), the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said on February 2, 2022. “There is significant risk that other IDP sites could be attacked as well,” Spokesperson Liz Throssell told journalists in Geneva.

The most recent occurred last week when the armed group Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO), an association of various Lendu militia, killed some 62 people at the Plaine Savo site in Ituri province. UNICEF condemned the attack in which 15 children were initially reported to have been killed and more than 30 injured.

CODECO is one of an array of militias operating in eastern Congo as a result of longstanding tensions over land and resources. Their militants have killed hundreds of civilians in Ituri in recent years and forced thousands to flee their homes, according to the United Nations.