Thousands flee DRC conflict

Thousands of people, including many child soldiers fleeing conflict in DRC's Equateur province, have arrived in the Mobaye and Bangassou areas of the CAR since last week, UNHCR said on Thursday. "We have counted at least 5,000 armed persons," a UNHCR regional spokesman told IRIN. "Some appear to be [DRC] government soldiers, but a significant number are children who were taken from schools and armed," he said. The influx began after Gbadolite and Yakoma were taken by Congolese rebel forces. UNHCR was currently undertaking a "status determination" exercise of the new arrivals, the spokesman said. Meanwhile, Reuters quoted a government spokesman as saying the arriving soldiers had been disarmed by CAR forces. UNHCR has not yet been able to verify press reports that some 6,000 civilians had also arrived in Mobaye and Bangassou from the DRC. "This is a huge area...We may have to send in more staff," the UNHCR spokesman said. He added that another 100 people had arrived at Bangui from the Zongo area of Equateur.