Under the shadow of a tree, a group is gathering, exchanging greetings. Peter, a mental health counsellor for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and Margaret Abuk, MSF health promoter, are conducting an awareness and educational session for a group of overfifty people. A woman in the background is carrying a jerrycan of water on her head, … Read more
In just two weeks, more than 670 victims of sexual violence have been treated by Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) teams in camps for displaced people around Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, representing 48 new victims per day. These shocking figures reflect the extreme vulnerability and risk of violence faced by displaced … Read more
“The whole family was in the field working when the shooting started. We ran away and walked for three hours to Rumangabo in the rain,” says Ponsie Benda, 54. The father of 13 found refuge in Virunga National Park’s primary school in Rumangabo in June, when clashes between the M23 armed group and the Congolese … Read more
AMSTERDAM – Early yesterday morning, trucks arrived at Laylan displaced people’s camp, in Kirkuk governorate, Iraq, in preparation for moving residents back to their areas of origin. Camp residents have expressed their fears of being returned against their will to staff from Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). MSF, who is providing healthcare in the camp, is deeply … Read more
KINSHASA – For years, the territories of Masisi, Walikale and Rutshuru, in the southern part of North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, have been plagued with armed violence and banditry. In the past months, these armed clashes have intensified, further aggravating the dire humanitarian situation, leading to significant numbers of displaced people and worrying signs of malnutrition, sexual … Read more
KISANGANI/GENEVA – Multiple humanitarian crises are unfolding in Ituri province, northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and hundreds of thousands of people are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, according to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The recent upsurge in violence across the regions of Djugu, Mahagi and Irumu have forced thousands to flee their … Read more