Humanitarian catastrophe looms in east Congo as rebels push south, official says

By Reuters

The advance of Rwanda-backed M23 rebels into Democratic Republic of Congo’s South Kivu province threatens to trigger a humanitarian catastrophe in an area already housing thousands of displaced people, the provincial governor said.

The Tutsi-led rebels have been inching south since they seized eastern Congo’s largest city of Goma at the end of last month, gaining more ground despite mediation efforts.

About 3,000 people were killed in days of violence that preceded the capture of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, according to United Nations figures.

Hospitals were overwhelmed with casualties and humanitarian operations in the city were hindered as non-essential aid workers had to be evacuated and warehouses were looted.

Provincial governor Jean-Jacques Purusi Sadiki told Reuters in an interview that there had since been an influx of people fleeing Goma into South Kivu “creating huge humanitarian needs that we are trying to face”. The region