Nearly 7 million people displaced in DRC as conflict escalates, says UN

By Hassan Isilow

The number of internally displaced people has climbed to 6.9 million in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) due to increased conflict, the United Nations said on Monday.

“With ongoing conflict and escalating violence, the DRC is facing one of the largest internal displacement and humanitarian crises in the world,’’ the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a release.

The majority of internally displaced persons, about 5.6 million or 81%, live in the eastern provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, and Tanganyika, where several rebel groups operate, according to IOM.

IOM said in North Kivu alone, up to 1 million people have been displaced due to the ongoing conflict with the rebel group “Mouvement du 23 Mars” (M23 rebels).

“More than two-thirds of the internally displaced persons, nearly 4.8 million people, live in host families,’’ the UN agency said.

Fabien Sambussy, IOM’s Chief of Mission in DRC, said: “The most recent escalation of the conflict has uprooted more people in less time like rarely seen before’’.

Sambussy said despite limited humanitarian access and security concerns, IOM remains committed to providing critical assistance to displaced persons, returnees and host communities affected by the crisis.  

Congolese people have been living through a storm of crises for decades.