Girls as young as 6 raped by DRC troops

Democratic Republic of Congo troops raped at least 97 women and 33 girls, some as young as 6, in the country’s volatile east after they fled from advancing M23 rebels in late November, according to a UN report released on Wednesday.

This article originally appeared in www.news24.com.

Democratic Republic of Congo troops raped at least 97 women and 33 girls, some as young as 6, in the country’s volatile east after they fled from advancing M23 rebels in late November, according to a UN report released on Wednesday.

The majority of the rapes by the Congolese army (FARDC) occurred in Minova during a two-day period, and most cases documented by the UN Joint Human Rights Office were committed in the same manner.

“FARDC soldiers entered houses, usually in groups of three to six and, after threatening the inhabitants, looted whatever they could find,” the Joint Human Rights Office, which is part of the UN peacekeeping mission in DRC, wrote in its report on abuses in eastern DRC between November 15 and December 2.

“One or two of the soldiers would leave with the looted goods and at least one would stand guard as the remaining FARDC soldiers raped women and girls in the house,” the report said. “Most victims were raped by more than one soldier.” To coninue reading click here.