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ICRC not approached over “exchange” of prisoners

[Ghana] Some of the 15,000 people who fled fighting between rebels and government troops returning to their homes in the town of Sake, North Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo on 3 December 2006. Sake was retaken on 27 November by the 11th and 14 Gratien Ira/IRIN
The villagers fled new clashes
ICRC on Wednesday said it had not been approached by the Ugandan or Chadian governments on their intentions to “exchange” prisoners of war (POWs) captured in the DRC. Ugandan media had reported that the two countries would exchange POWs under the supervision of ICRC. “We have not been approached by any of the parties involved about the exchange,” ICRC spokesman Juan Martinez told IRIN. He said ICRC had recently visited 27 POWs in Chad “but all were Congolese.” Meanwhile, RCD rebels in Lusambo, Kasai Oriental province, were holding 43 prisoners of war, including 35 Congolese, six Namibians and two Zimbabweans, AFP said on Wednesday. Other allied soldiers were killed or wounded when the rebels captured the town last week, it said.

This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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