{"id":51698,"date":"2025-01-27T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/dr-congo-battle-for-goma-continues-as-volatile-crisis-unfolds\/"},"modified":"2025-01-27T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T12:00:00","slug":"dr-congo-battle-for-goma-continues-as-volatile-crisis-unfolds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=51698","title":{"rendered":"DR Congo: Battle for Goma continues as \u2018volatile\u2019 crisis unfolds"},"content":{"rendered":"


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In a briefing on Monday, Mr. Lacroix told journalists in New York that some staff from the UN\u2019s Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) was forced to seek shelter for a few hours due to the ongoing conflict.<\/p>\n

He explained that this had \u201climited their ability to have the full level of information that they would have gotten if they had not been sheltering\u201d, making it difficult to assess the fast-evolving situation.<\/p>\n

Mr. Lacroix said that peacekeepers remain in their positions but noted that safety was \u201cparamount\u201d for non-essential personnel and their dependents, who have been relocated away from Goma.<\/p>\n

He confirmed that MONUSCO personnel would continue to deliver on their mandate to the best of their ability, including protecting civilians and disarming combatants in accordance with international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fate of the millions of civilians living in Goma or having been displaced is really the priority, along with the safety and security of UN personnel<\/strong>,\u201d Mr. Lacroix said.<\/p>\n

Humanitarian catastrophe<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bruno Lemarquis, UN Deputy Special Representative, Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in the DRC, briefed the press from the ground and painted a grim picture of the humanitarian crisis.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is unfolding in Goma is coming on top of already one of the most protracted, complex, serious humanitarian crises on Earth<\/strong>, with close to 6.5 million displaced people in the country, including close to three million displaced people in North Kivu,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He described scenes of mass displacement and violence: \u201cCivilians are taking the brunt of the escalating hostilities\u201d, with heavy artillery fire \u201cdirected at the city centre\u201d including a maternity hospital.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cFor example, several shells struck the Charity Maternity Hospital in central Goma, killing and injuring civilians, including newborn and pregnant women,\u201d he emphasised.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Hospitals] are struggling to manage the influx of wounded people,\u201d he said, noting that basic services, including water, electricity and internet, are severely disrupted.<\/p>\n

Mr. Lemarquis called for temporary humanitarian pauses to facilitate the safe evacuation of civilians and ensure aid delivery. \u201cWe must act now to prevent further loss of life and alleviate the suffering of the people of Goma,\u201d he urged.<\/p>\n

Rwanda\u2019s role<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Responding to questions about Rwanda’s involvement, Mr. Lacroix confirmed the presence of Rwandan troops supporting M23 in Goma<\/strong>, citing significant troop numbers.<\/p>\n

He condemned the killing of peacekeepers, noting that three had died, including two from South Africa and one from Uruguay, with 12 others injured.<\/p>\n

The Under-Secretary-General reiterated the UN\u2019s call for all parties, including Rwanda, to respect the safety and security of UN personnel.<\/p>\n

Regarding Rwanda\u2019s role as a leading troop-contributing country to UN missions, Mr. Lacroix stated, \u201cAt this moment, we have to focus on the emergency, with saving as many lives as possible, and trying to bring about the cessation of hostilities<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diplomatic efforts<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Mr Lacroix reaffirmed the UN\u2019s commitment to supporting regional peace initiatives, welcoming the East African Community\u2019s plan for a summit on 28 January and an African Union Peace and Security Council session on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Both officials stressed the urgency of international engagement, with Mr. Lemarquis highlighting a recent $70 million allocation from the Central Emergency Response Fund to support humanitarian efforts.<\/p>\n

The press conference concluded with a stark message from Mr. Lacroix: \u201cI urge the international community to intensify its engagement to prevent the bloodshed and to support the humanitarian response. We must act now.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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In a briefing on Monday, Mr. Lacroix told journalists in New York that some staff from…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":51701,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[1938,482,1314,481,4789,4821,4820],"class_list":["post-51698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa","tag-battle","tag-congo","tag-continues","tag-crisis","tag-goma","tag-unfolds","tag-volatile"],"yoast_head":"\nDR Congo: Battle for Goma continues as \u2018volatile\u2019 crisis unfolds - Gulf Times | News by the minute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Gulf Times: Latest news across the GCC from UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/feed\/view\/en\/story\/2025\/01\/1159496\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"DR Congo: Battle for Goma continues as \u2018volatile\u2019 crisis unfolds\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Gulf News| UAE's Largest News aggregator site\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/feed\/view\/en\/story\/2025\/01\/1159496\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gulf Times | News by the minute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/100084981843786\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-01-27T12:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1738018342_image560x340cropped.avif\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"340\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"gulftimes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Gulftimesuae\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Gulftimesuae\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"gulftimes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"DR Congo: Battle for Goma continues as \u2018volatile\u2019 crisis unfolds - 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