Fighting Continues in DRC and UN Fears Humanitarian Catastrophe

As heavy fighting continued to rage in the town of Bunia in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a top UN relief official voiced fear of a looming humanitarian disaster in the area. Intense fighting is ongoing between ethnic Hema and Lendu militias in Bunia itself, as well as around the airport. The local headquarters of the UN Organization Mission in the DRC (MONUC) is wedged in the area between the two groups. More than 3,000 people have sought shelter at the MONUC headquarters in Bunia, and another 5,000 were at the airport. At the Mission compound, water supplies and sanitation facilities were very limited. Civilians fleeing the ongoing violence in Bunia.