200808292039 | UN condemns DRC clashes between army and Rebels

UN condemns DRC clashes between army and Rebels

Kinshasa - The UN special envoy for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Alan Doss, condemned the latest clashes between the army and rebels in a statement on Friday. Doss "condemns with the utmost firmness the latest fighting between armed elements of the CNDP (National Congress for the Defence of the People) and the armed forces of the DRC (FARDC) in the territory of Rutshuru," said the statement.

The fighting broke out on Thursday some 50km to the north of the provincial capital Goma.

Both the FARDC armed forces and renegade Tutsi General Laurent Nkunda's CNDP blamed each other for starting the fighting on Thursday and gave conflicting accounts of which side held the upper hand.

The 17 000-strong UN peacekeeping force MONUC said the fighting, which ended on Thursday night, was the most intense since a peace deal signed in January.

No official death toll was available from the clashes, which broke out in the village of Kanombe and spread to several other towns, but a nurse said some 15 seriously wounded FARDC soldiers were admitted to hospital in Rutshuru.

Doss asked both sides to "revert to their initial positions and to avoid all actions likely to result in a new escalation of violence".

MONUC said it had sent armoured vehicles to patrol the region and stepped-up contact with both sides to encourage an end to the latest clashes.

The January deal, known as the Goma Agreement, among other things committed the warring factions to a ceasefire, but armed clashes have continued and there have been numerous attacks on civilians.