Red Cross envoy: Congo conflict has worsened with sharp increases in sexual violence and wounded
6 months, 2 weeks ago

Red Cross envoy: Congo conflict has worsened with sharp increases in sexual violence and wounded

Associated Press  

UNITED NATIONS — The decades-old conflict in Congo’s mineral-rich east has “drastically deteriorated” since early 2022, and gotten even worse since last October, with sharp increases in sexual violence, the number of wounded, and child recruitment, the top Red Cross official in the country said Wednesday. Moreillon told several reporters at the office of the ICRC’s U.N. envoy that the number of displaced Congolese rose from 5.6 million in early 2022 to nearly 7.4 million now, which makes Congo “one of the most serious crises for displacement on the planet.” He said another escalating indicator is the level of sexual violence. Moreillon cited the case of a woman the ICRC cared for who had been raped twice and explained that women in groups went to fetch wood “taking condoms with them to try to convince the rapist to wear them while they were raped.” This was not just to prevent getting pregnant or sexually transmitted diseases, but also to prevent them from being ordered to leave the house if their husbands learned they were raped, he said Moreillon said sexual violence can not only be a weapon of war but also a product of decades of war where “anyone with a gun feels he can do whatever he wants” — and the fact that there is impunity for these crimes “does not help.” The ICRC has also witnessed an increase in child recruitment, with estimates that it’s increased roughly 80% in some areas. Last year, Moreillon said, 1,050 cases were treated at the Goma hospital, and just in February this year the ICRC treated 350 cases — a third of last year’s caseload in just one month.

History of this topic

Aid group says Congo had 25,000 victims of sexual violence last year
3 months, 1 week ago
A truce in Congo ends in a week. Aid groups say it could be a lost opportunity to help civilians
5 months, 4 weeks ago
Congo faces unprecedented crisis as violence displaces 250,000 in the last month, a UN official says
9 months, 4 weeks ago
What’s happening in eastern Congo and why aid groups are warning of a new humanitarian crisis
10 months, 3 weeks ago
What's happening in eastern Congo and why aid groups are warning of a new humanitarian crisis
10 months, 3 weeks ago
Internal documents show the World Health Organization paid sexual abuse victims in Congo $250 each
1 year, 1 month ago
Escalating violence in Congo displaces more people and demands urgent response, UN and aid group say
1 year, 5 months ago
Kenya to spend $37 million on sending forces to Congo
2 years, 2 months ago

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