Tuesday 18 November 2008, by Desmond North.
The French UNA believes that more troops will be needed to guarantee the
tranquility in DR Congo and have presented a draft resolution to the United
Nations Security Council aimed at increasing the number of UN troops in the
country by 3,000.
At present, there are about 17,000 soldiers and police in DR Congo – the
biggest UN force of its kind.
In the last few months, fighting between the Congolese army and rebels has
escalated, and more and more children are being kidnapped to bolster numbers
amongst the various militia.
As the crisis continue, there are growing concerns that foreign forces are
being drawn into the conflict, as eyewitnesses continue to sight Angolan and
Zimbabwean troops in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The clashes have driven hundreds of thousands of people from their homes and
created a humanitarian crisis.
The fighting comes as UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo continues efforts to broker
an end to the conflict.
Reports however claim that the United Nations is unsure which countries
would contribute the extra troops, or when they could be deployed.
The Security Council is expected to vote on the proposal later this week.
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