UN agency investigates reports of Congolese refugee influx

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has sent a mission to northwestern Uganda to assess the situation following an influx of Congolese refugees fleeing renewed fighting in the northeastern district of Ituri in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Hundreds of the refugees were reported to have crossed into the Ugandan district of Nebbi, 500 km northwest of the capital, Kampala. The Kampala office of the UNHCR said it was waiting for the mission's final report on the situation along the northwestern border with the DRC. "We have asked our people in Arua to move to the area to see what is going on, but we have heard that there has been some trouble across the border," Castro Magluff, the UNHCR deputy resident representative, told IRIN. The Nebbi resident district commissioner, Betty Adima, told IRIN that the Congolese had started crossing into the district two days ago. Many women had arrived with their children, she added. "People started moving into our side two days ago, through various entry points. We don't know what has caused this, but some adults crossed back to assess the situation. They keep coming and going back," she said. Adima added that the influx had not yet had a major impact on the district; those fleeing were carrying blankets, personal belongings and were mingling with locals. "We have prepared our structures to register them and even alerted the security people about the influx," she said. The UN Mission in the DRC, known as MONUC, has confirmed reports of renewed fighting between militia groups in Ituri. The clashes, between the Nationalist and Integrationist Front and the Armed Forces of the Congolese People, took place in the town of Djegu, 35 km north of Bunia, the main town in Ituri. Fighting had also been observed in areas along the Ugandan border. The latest fighting has affected civilians in the villages of Aru, Rona, Ngote and Ndrele, despite the signing on 14 May of an "engagement act" between seven militia groups in Ituri to end all hostilities. On Tuesday, the MONUC spokeswoman in Bunia, Rachel Eklou, reported that calm had been restored in Ituri following a MONUC-brokered ceasefire agreement signed on Monday between the two militia groups.