The clashes, at Lemara and Lubarika on the Ruzizi plain, pit forces of the DRC army against Rwandan Hutu rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), it said.
The UN's office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs (OCHA) said almost 5 000 households had been displaced, a total of about 25 000 people. To these should be added 867 households of former refugees who had returned from Burundi.
"The humanitarian situation is worrying in these places," OCHA said. It added the displaced families were receiving preliminary help from the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the World Food Programme and Unicef.
The UN mission in DRC (Monuc) "will deploy military observers in these places to ensure the security of the (local) populations", its local spokesman, Major Abou Thiam, told reporters.
The activities of the the Rwandan force FDLR have been banned in DRC since 2002. It is a politico-military organisation opposed to the Rwandan govermment in Kigali, which accuses it of participating in the 1994 genocide in the country.
About 8 000 FDLR members refuse to return to Rwanda but are suspected by the Rwandan goverment of mounting raids into the country. - Sapa-AFP
EMAIL THIS ARTICLE SAVE THIS ARTICLE FEEDBACK
To subscribe email subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za or click here
To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here
