DR Congo: Nation-wide mourning as funeral is held for victims of bombings at IDP camps

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) held a burial ceremony for the victims of recent bombings on Wednesday, which occurred at a number of internally displaced person (IDP) locations in the province of North Kivu in the eastern part of the nation.

At least five rockets struck four IDP camps in the surrounding neighbourhoods of Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, on May 3. The number of casualties increased to 37 injured and 35 dead, according to the provincial government.

Modeste Mutinga Mutushayi, the Minister of Social Affairs, Humanitarian Actions, and National Solidarity, reiterated the DRC government’s commitment to working nonstop to bring peace back to the country’s east.

“May this mourning awakens in us a dynamic of national solidarity. Be more than reassured that you are not alone in this difficult, disturbing, and trying ordeal,” he said.

The locations that were attacked on Friday are situated along the axis that connects Goma and Sake, a town that is thought to be the final obstacle to Goma and one of the flashpoints of hostilities between the rebels of the March 23 Movement (M23) and the DRC military.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned last Tuesday that the risk of further shell explosions “cannot be ruled out,” as one of the fallen shells remains unexploded, and there is an escalation of hostilities in areas surrounding IDP camps.
The OCHA has further stated that the ongoing hostilities have “further restricted” humanitarian access to IDP settlements along the Goma-Sake axis.