DR Congo strife escalating, UN warns‘HEAVY WEAPONS’: The situation in South Kivu is tense, with hostilities expanding and shifting the front lines, including toward the border with Burundi, an official saidAP, UNITED NATIONSThe UN’s acting top envoy for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) on Thursday warned the UN Security Council that the conflict in the nation is escalating and expanding, with increasing use of heavy weapons and offensive drones posing serious risks to civilians. “The situation in South Kivu remains tense, and the renewed hostilities have expanded and shifted the front lines, including toward Burundi’s border, increasing the risk of a regional conflagration,” Van de Perre said. A woman helps children get off a motorcycle at Unity Stadium in Goma, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on Friday last week. Photo: AFPEastern DR Congo has been battered by decades of unrest as government forces fight more than 100 armed groups, the most potent being M23, often over access to the nation’s mineral riches. Officials from DR Congo, Rwanda and the US met in Washington last week and agreed on coordinated steps to de-escalate tensions in the nation’s east.
