UN: Thousands of refugees fleeing DR Congo entered Uganda
'We are concerned that local capacity and services may be soon overwhelmed,' a UNHCR representative said
At least 11,000 people crossed into Uganda to escape clashes in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, the UN Refugee Agency said Tuesday.
The number is the largest refugee influx into Uganda in more than a year, said UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo.
"An upsurge of fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has forced at least 11,000 people to flee across the border into Uganda since Sunday night," Mantoo told a briefing in Geneva.
"The fighting between militia groups and Congo's armed forces is taking place in North Kivu's Rutshuru Territory."
Some 8,000 asylum-seekers crossed at Bunagana town and another 3,000 at the Kibaya border point, both of which are around 300 miles southwest of Uganda's capital Kampala.
Suspected insurgents attacked army positions on Sunday night, DR Congo officials said, sending desperate residents fleeing over the border.
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The Congolese military attributed the attacks to a group called M23, one of more than 120 armed groups who roam the area.
The UNHCR relocated about 500 asylum seekers to the Nyakabande transit center, which can accommodate up to 1,500 people.
They were screened for Covid, registered and given essentials like food and water, Mantoo explained.
Uganda hosts around 1.5 million refugees - more than any other country in Africa - of which around 440,000 are from the DR Congo.
"We are concerned that local capacity and services may be soon overwhelmed and request urgent resources to address the needs of the new arrivals," said Mantoo.