KINSHASA, 11 September 2021, (TON): The UN refugee agency said “more than 1,200 civilians have been killed in the restive DR Congo provinces of Ituri and North Kivu so far this year and millions of people now need humanitarian aid in the eastern region.”

Democratic Republic of Congo authorities declared a state of siege in May, an exceptional measure aimed at ending the reign of terror by armed groups operating in the region, most notably the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).

UN refugee agency spokesman Boris Cheshirkov told reporters in Geneva “the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners, recorded more than 1,200 civilian deaths and 1,100 rapes this year" in the two most affected provinces of North Kivu and Ituri.”

"Attacks attributed to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group have increased in brutality since late 2020, and the frequency of killings of civilians has not abated despite the state of siege," the UN refugee agency added.

UN sources said that last weekend rebels shot or hacked to death at least 30 people in a new massacre in Ituri.