Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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October 26, 2008

Congolese Rebels Seize Military Base, National Park
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1EF2F94:A6F02AD83191E1607A6010A861384BD570AD7039DCD7B7E4&
 
Unknown number of people have been killed as civilians fled the area
where rebels loyal to renegade General Laurent Nkunda and government
troops traded gunfire 
Indian UN soldiers drive past people fleeing fighting, near Kibumba,
some 40 kilometers north of Goma in eastern Congo, 26 Oct 2008Rebels in
the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have seized a military base and
captured the headquarters of a national park. Forces loyal to renegade
General Laurent Nkunda launched a new offensive in North Kivu province
Sunday, overrunning an army base near the town of Rumangabo and driving
park rangers out of Virunga National Park. Civilians fled the area as
rebels and government troops traded gunfire and artillery. Witnesses say
an unknown number of people were killed. Virunga is home to about 200
rare mountain gorillas. The park has often been the scene of battles,
and conservationists worry about the impact on the gorilla population.
Nkunda's followers seized the same military base near Rumangabo earlier
this month, although the army soon drove them back out. Officials from
the World Food Program say the renewed fighting has driven some 200,0!
 00 people from their homes since August. The newly-displaced join
another 1.2 million driven from their homes since early 2007, when the
clashes began. The agency warned last week that the situation is
deteriorating and that it urgently needs assistance to keep up with the
needs of the displaced population. Nkunda says his rebel militia is
defending Tutsi civilians from Hutu fighters from neighboring Rwanda.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.


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