Conflict in eastern Congo is once again in the headlines, once again it’s very bad news.
Emmanuel on Gorilla.cd reports
“Fighting at Rumangabo started at 0400 today between the rebels of Laurent Nkunda and the army. It has now totally engulfed the park station and our Rangers have been forced to flee into the forests for their lives. The rebels now are the only occupants of the park station at Rumangabo. This has never happened before. This is a serious time. We need to get our 50+ Rangers back to safety in Goma, 45km south of Rumangabo. The main road is blocked because of the fighting so they are walking through the forests of the park south, to Kibumba, about 20km away, where we aim to pick them up in trucks. We are trying to maintain phone contact but they don’t have much battery life in their phones”.
Emmanuel has made an appeal on Gorilla.cd and any donations made here will go directly to support these rangers during these difficult times. I’ve spoken to some friends on the ground who say that the situation is extremely bad.
An ABC news report on Monuc website reports that “Rebels loyal to renegade Gen. Laurent Nkunda have seized a major army camp in eastern Congo in heavy fighting Sunday that sent thousands of civilians fleeing, U.N. officials and rebels said. An unknown number of soldiers, rebels and civilians were killed in the renewed fighting in North Kivu province, civilians said.
Government troops raced down the road north from the provincial capital of Goma to reinforce a counterattack Sunday morning. One tank careened into a group of fleeing civilians and killed three teenage boys”.
This is the second time that Nkunda and his rebels have attacked Rumangabo. Thousands more are now fleeing through the forests and aid agencies say that the fighting jeopardises the delivery of aid to the now malnourished victims of this escalating conflict.
More reports here on the Guardian and the BBC who state that the fighting is continuing and an unknown number of people have been killed. More than 200,000 people are said to have fled the area since the end of August.
Donations made here are
Feb 9th Jesse W USD 20.00
9 Comments
What horrible news!!!!!!! I am so sorry to wake up this news today……..please everyone be safe!
Hey hate to post this on this blog..as it may not be appropriate but everyone that an please go to Siew’s blog and sign the petition to protect animals in Malaysia..there are some very disturbing pictures!
I’m stunned. This is more horrible than I ever imagined. I’ve seen the story on CNN.com and on the Washington Post and BBC News. I hope it’s getting tons of coverage.
s.
This is devastating news!! I am worried for the precious gorillas and the brave rangers who are trying to protect them!
I hope that this tragedy will get a lot of media coverage and that it will end soon!
It’s clear what Nkunda’s intentions are at this point – he stole all the ranger’s equipment and intends to use Rumangabo as one of his bases. If it’s true that he’s making a big play to take over Virunga, then he’ll have plenty of money from burning down the forest for charcoal. So much for his earlier claims about being a conservationist, eh? Not that anyone with a functioning brain believed him but with the world watching you’d think he’d try to present a more sympathetic image.
As for us here in the States, it’s time to start writing and expressing our deep concern – again – to our Congressional representatives and to the presidential candidates about the situation in Virunga. You can use congress.org as an easy-to-use portal for writing to your reps. Get busy.
s.
I will write all my representatives far and wide. Lisa
Its a very sad day and yet again this beautiful species is at serious risk.
I visited Rwanda and Uganda in 2006 and the Virungas are an enchanting location.
The Governments of the Major Powers should offer assistance and make a stand against Nkunda, before the Mountain Gorillas become extinct.
Then it will be to late.
I’m sickened. I’ve written my representatives and urged them to put pressure on Rwanda to put pressure on Nkunda. I hope this gets more media coverage.
i hope that the UN presence can now at least help a little bit. i have been thinking about this situation nonstop since i heard about it yesterday morning. i hope hope hope that these brave folks get to safety, and also that no harm comes to the gorilla families in the park.
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[...] The fighting in Rumangabo, a military base north of Goma: “Fighting at Rumangabo started at 0400 today between the rebels of Laurent Nkunda and the army. It has now totally engulfed the park station and our Rangers have been forced to flee into the forests for their lives. The rebels now are the only occupants of the park station at Rumangabo. This has never happened before. This is a serious time. We need to get our 50+ Rangers back to safety in Goma, 45km south of Rumangabo. The main road is blocked because of the fighting so they are walking through the forests of the park south, to Kibumba, about 20km away, where we aim to pick them up in trucks. We are trying to maintain phone contact but they don’t have much battery life in their phones”. Emmanuel has made an appeal on Gorilla.cd and any donations made here will go directly to support these rangers during these difficult times. I’ve spoken to some friends on the ground who say that the situation is extremely bad. [...]
[...] Os combates em Rumangabo, uma base militar ao norte de Goma: Fighting at Rumangabo started at 0400 today between the rebels of Laurent Nkunda and the army. It has now totally engulfed the park station and our Rangers have been forced to flee into the forests for their lives. The rebels now are the only occupants of the park station at Rumangabo. This has never happened before. This is a serious time. We need to get our 50+ Rangers back to safety in Goma, 45km south of Rumangabo. The main road is blocked because of the fighting so they are walking through the forests of the park south, to Kibumba, about 20km away, where we aim to pick them up in trucks. We are trying to maintain phone contact but they don’t have much battery life in their phones. Emmanuel has made an appeal on Gorilla.cd and any donations made here will go directly to support these rangers during these difficult times. I’ve spoken to some friends on the ground who say that the situation is extremely bad. “Hoje em Rumangabo, os combates entre o exército e os rebeldes de Laurent Nkunda começaram às 4 horas. Agora a luta já envolveu completamente a área da sede do parque, e nossos guardas florestais foram forçados a fugir floresta adentro para salvar suas vidas. Os rebeldes são agora os únicos ocupantes da sede do parque em Rumangabo. Isso nunca aconteceu antes. São tempos duros. Precisamos trazer com segurança os nossos mais de 50 guardas florestais de volta para Goma, que fica a 45 quilômetros ao sul de Rumangabo. A estrada principal está bloqueada por causa dos combates, por isso os guardas estão caminhando por dentro da floresta rumo ao sul, para Kibumba, a cerca de 20 quilômetros de distãncia, onde pretendemos apanhá-los com caminhões. Estamos tentando manter contato telefônico, mas a bateria de seus celulares está acabando”. Emmanuel fez um apelo no Gorilla.cd, e qualquer doação realizada servirá diretamente para ajudar os guardas florestais durante esses tempos difíceis. Falei com alguns amigos no local que dizem que a situação é extremamente ruim. [...]