Fighting between militia groups and Congolese armed forces supported by the UN, as well as attacks and violence against civilians, caused the
displacement of some 800,000 people in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during the first six months of 2009. As a result of these and earlier episodes, an estimated two million
people were displaced in North and South Kivu and Orientale Province as of the end of July 2009. Many internally displaced people (IDPs) have not received assistance from international agencies, whose
access has been blocked by the insecurity. Tens of thousands have sought shelter in camps and spontaneous settlements, as the resident population’s capacity to host IDPs has
declined.
Since the mid-1990s, millions of Congolese have fled their homes to escape fighting between rebel groups and the government, in a complex conflict which has also involved
neighbouring states. The International Rescue Committee estimated in January 2008 that some 5.4 million had died as a result of the conflict. Displacement peaked in 2003, with an estimated 3.4 million
people forced from their homes, most of them in eastern DRC.
A Palestinian refugee who lives in Syria attends a rally for her old village of Al-Tantoura during the "Day of Palestinian Village" festival organized by Palestinian Return Community (Wajeb) in Al-Aydoun ...
