Congolese flee Libenge bombing into CAR

Fighting in the northwestern province of Equateur has prompted some 6,000 people from the DRC, mostly women and children, to flee into the Central African Republic (CAR), UNHCR reported on Friday. On Saturday 22 July alone, some 1,203 people arrived in the CAR town of Zinga, situated along the Ubangui River opposite DRC territory, agency spokeswoman Delphine Marie stated. “They say they are fleeing bombing by the Congolese army, reportedly around the town of Libenge,” Marie said, adding that a recent UNHCR mission to the area across the river from Libenge confirmed seeing bombs being dropped on the town. Libenge has around 20,000 inhabitants, many of whom have now fled into the forest and many more of whom could cross the Ubangui to seek refuge in CAR. Congolese rebels from the Mouvement de liberation du Congo (MLC) were reportedly cruising the Ubangui River - the target of DRC government aircraft. The MLC presence on the river had made it especially difficult for refugees to cross, and the rebels sometimes charged a fee for them to do so, Marie said. Meanwhile, refugee registration in CAR was now underway, and could reveal a much higher numbers of DRC refugees, she added. Diplomatic sources confirmed that DRC refugees were arriving in the CAR border towns of Mogoumba and Zinga and the authorities were taking measures to accommodate the new arrivals at various sites in the country. The refugee situation was described as worrying and precarious, particularly regarding food and sanitation. The sources warned that if the government offensive in Equateur province continued, the situation in CAR would give even more cause for concern.