GOMA, Congo (AP) 鈥 A record 6.9 million people have been displaced by conflict across Congo, the United Nations migration agency said, making it one of the world's largest displacement and humanitarian crises.
has been the primary reason for displacement, the International Organization for Migration said Monday in a report based on data from Congo's 26 provinces.
At least 80% of the displaced people live in eastern Congo鈥檚 provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri and Tanganyika, which have long been overrun by dozens of armed groups seeking a share of the region鈥檚 gold and other resources. Some groups reportedly have been backed by Congo鈥檚 neighbors. Some groups are trying to protect their communities.
鈥淭he most recent escalation of the conflict has uprooted more people in less time like rarely seen before,鈥 said IOM鈥檚 chief of mission in Congo, Fabien Sambussy.
More than two-thirds of those displaced, nearly 4.8 million people, live with host families, the IOM said, further squeezing already impoverished communities.
Frustration has been growing over the increase in violence. , the Congolese government directed the East African regional force, deployed just last year to help end the fighting, to leave the country by December. The government alleged a 鈥渓ack of satisfactory results on the ground.鈥
also has faced pressure to withdraw from Congo after more than two decades in the country.
