The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday condemned the rape of numerous children by armed groups, likely from both sides of the conflict in eastern Congo, as rebels expand their control and push government forces back.
UNICEF's accusation comes as violence in the mineral-rich region persists. The agency reported widespread abuse, with perpetrators seemingly drawn from both M23 rebels and government troops engaged in the ongoing battle.
"In the North and South Kivu provinces, we are receiving horrific reports of grave violations against children, including rape and other forms of sexual violence at unprecedented levels," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.
"One mother recounted to our staff how her six daughters, the youngest just 12 years old, were systematically raped by armed men while searching for food," Russell added.
Health facilities in the restive region reported 572 rape cases from the week of Jan. 27 to Feb. 2 – more than a fivefold increase compared to the week before, Lianne Gutcher, UNICEF's communications chief in Congo, told The Associated Press (AP).
Of those, 170 were children, she added.
Armed men perpetrated the rapes, but it was unclear which specific armed group or army they belonged to, Gutcher said. "It is suspected that all parties to the conflict committed sexual violence," she added.
The Rwanda-backed M23 rebels are the most prominent among more than 100 armed groups vying for control of Congo’s mineral-rich east in a decades-long conflict that has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. In late January, the rebels captured Goma, the region’s largest city, in a major escalation of the fighting.
Last week, the United Nations Human Rights Council launched a commission to investigate atrocities, including rapes and killings akin to "summary executions" committed by both the Congolese army and the M23 rebels in the region since the beginning of the year.
On Monday, 84 Congolese soldiers accused of murder, rape, and other crimes in the country's east went on trial in the city of Bukavu. The city is under the control of government forces, but the rebel offensive has inched closer to it recently.
Congo's Health Minister Roger Kamba, meanwhile, said 143 patients being treated for mpox fled from Goma’s hospitals as the rebels pushed into the city. Some were found or came back on their own, but 110 have not returned.
The minister said the city has also recorded nearly 100 cases of cholera since the rebel offensive started. Goma is now fully under rebel control.
Kamba added that Congolese authorities, with the help of aid groups, were able to send vaccines, medical supplies, and medicines to Goma through a humanitarian corridor via neighboring Kenya and Rwanda. He did not provide details.
On Thursday, Congolese musician Delcat Idengo was killed in Goma in what authorities described as an "assassination." Congo's government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya blamed his death on "Rwanda and its accomplices." AP was not able to independently verify the circumstances surrounding the death of the artist, known for his politically charged songs.
