U.N. concerned about alleged DRC attacks

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 22 (UPI) -- U.N. agencies say recent reports of attacks on civilians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are troubling news to the international organization.

A spokeswoman for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said reports starting in April have detailed alleged acts of homicide, rape and theft against civilian targets in the African country, the Voice of America said Friday.

Humanitarian affairs spokeswoman Elizabeth Byrs said particularly disturbing has been a significant increase in reports of rape and sexual violence amid clashes between government forces and soldiers loyal to the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda.

"Rape in Congo and some other places has always been used as a weapon of war," Byrs said. "It is not a new fact."

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said attacks in the country's South and North Kivu provinces have left dozens dead and hundreds of homes burned.

"Since January, attacks by the FDLR (Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda) in North and South Kivu have driven more than 370,000 people from their homes and into the forests and other places of refuge," UNHCR spokesman Andrew Purvis said.