The United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) has estimated that at least 131 civilians were killed by Mouvement 23 Marches (M23) rebels at the end of November.
The UN investigation indicates that these deaths occurred mainly in two localities, Kishishe and Bambo, in the Rutshuru district of North Kivu province. This area has continued to record an increase in violence.
The victims were executed in what points to a series of retaliatory measures for the ongoing offensive carried out by the government. «The violence has been carried out as part of a campaign by rapists, kidnappers and murderers, who have been looting villages in Rutshuru in the face of clashes with government forces,» the text states.
The investigation shows that of the dead, 102 are men, 17 are women and at least twelve are children, who died between November 29 and 30. All of them were arbitrarily executed, while some twenty women were raped, according to the MONUSCO document, which condemned the violence against civilians.
«It is necessary that access to the civilian population be facilitated in order to deliver urgent humanitarian aid,» the UN mission pointed out. It also applauded the government’s decision to open legal proceedings against the possible perpetrators of these violations of human rights and international law.
It also called for the «immediate cessation of violence against civilians» and urged the parties involved to «immediately lay down their arms and engage in a process of demobilization, disarmament and reintegration».
However, the M23 rebels, who have taken control of several localities near the border with Rwanda and Uganda, have denied having attacked civilians.
