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 Vicious fighting between the Hema and Lendu ethnic groups in the eastern Congolese city of Bunia has caused more than 20,000 people to flee into the jungles for their lives. More than 400 people a day are reported arriving in outlying areas north of Beni, nearly 125 miles south of Bunia, many having walked up to four days in search of safety. World Vision is the only operational non-governmental organization responding to the crisis in Beni, distributing food and survival kits to more than 1,500 families. The agency also has dispatched assessment teams to the towns of Oicha and Erengeti where thousands more are believed to have sought refuge.
“I talked to one lady who doesn’t know where her three children are. She was forced to run to save her life and couldn’t find them,” said World Vision communications officer Alison Preston. “She is looking after three children who belong to someone in her extended family, and doesn’t know if their parents survived.”
The most recent fighting between the Hema and Lendu peoples has killed more than 110 people, mostly women and children. According to the United Nations, the fighting displaced more than 10,000 families. In the past two years, conflict in the DRC has displaced more than 2.6 million people.
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