BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo, March 1 (AFP) - The killing last week of nine UN peacekeepers has heightened fears in restive eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) of a new surge in ethnic violence after two years of relative calm.

The slayings have prompted the dispatch from Kinshasa of an additional 3,000 troops to the troubled mineral-rich Ituri region and vows from DRC officials to arrest the militias believed responsible.

But the extra troops and the promises of action have done little to quell the concerns of Ituri residents who

Over 40 people had died in a diamond mining area near Zobia, in the North-East of Congo. This area located in the tropical rainforest is difficult to access due to very bad roads and practically no means of communication.

While alerting the medical authorities,

My name is Anneke Van Woudenberg. I am the senior researcher on the DRC at Human Rights Watch. I have worked on humanitarian and human rights issues in the Congo for nearly six years

Refugees are continuing to arrive in western Uganda from the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Yesterday (Monday), local authorities in Kanungo District reported the arrival of 177 people in Ishasha, on the shores of Lake Edward, which forms the natural border with DRC. This is the largest reported influx at Ishasha

1.Le CIAT condamne avec la dernière énergie l'assassinat prémédité d'un officier et de huit soldats Bangladais de la MONUC par des miliciens de l'Ituri. L'attaque des miliciens est survenue le 25 février près de la localité de Kafe o=F9 les soldats de la MONUC protégeaient 8,000 personnes déplacées par ces mêmes miliciens. Il s'agit d'une attaque brutale contre des militaires de l'ONU dont le seul objectif est d'assurer la sécurité des populations civiles. Elle a eu lieu alors même qu'une délégation du CIAT se trouvait dans la région afin d'étudier les raisons de la reprise

Dans la matinée du 25 février 2005, 20 casques bleus appartenant au contingent bangladais de la MONUC et leur interprète, un employé civil congolais des Nations Unies, sont tombés dans une embuscade à 5 kilomètres à l'ouest du village de Kafé, dans le district d'Ituri, en RDC, tendue par un des groupes armés qui refusent de participer au processus de désarmement et de réinsertion communautaire parrainé par la communauté internationale. Au cours de cette embuscade, neuf soldats de la paix de la MONUC ont perdu la vie.

Que faisaient les casques bleus?

What were the peacekeepers doing?

The peacekeepers were on a mission to

MONUC facilitates the transport of a medical team and over 1 200 Kg of medical supplies to Zobia to combat a plague epidemic in the area:

The humanitarian Section facilitated the transport by MONUC of a medical team to Zobia, an area located at about 530 Km North of Kisangani, in efforts to investigate and combat a plague epidemic which has claimed the lives of over 60 people. The team is made of experts from WHO, Institut Pasteur of Madagascar and the Congolese Health Ministry. MONUC provided the team with 500 Kg of purified water. MONUC