RWANDA: GISENYE: HUTU REFUGEES FLEE CAMP AS FIGHTING DRAWS CLOSER

Описание: (31 Oct 1996) English/Nat

Thousands of Hutu refugees are abandoning their camp in Goma, Zaire Thursday because fighting between Tutsi rebels and Zairean forces is getting dangerously close to the town.

Goma is the main food base for refugee camps along the northern shores of Lake Kivu which are home to 700-thousand people.

There are reports that the Tutsi rebels are shelling the Goma camp, causing complete chaos and the UNHCR is considering pulling its staff out of the town.

Some of the refugees are crossing over the border into Rwanda, heading for the nearby refugee camp of Gisenye.

Gisenye refugee camp in Rwanda is just over the border from Zaire.

It is the destination for thousands of refugees fleeing fighting near the Zairean town of Goma.

The UNHCR provided trucks in which the refugees could board and leave the area.

Refugees and aid workers alike were not able to say what would happen to the Hutus or where they would eventually be taken.

The UNHCR in Goma said it was going to evacuate staff members following the increase in fighting between Zairean troops and ethnic Tutsi fighters.

The UNHCR is the co-ordinating agency for Goma and is also responsible for security there.

If it pulls out, other agencies are certain to follow, leaving more than 700-thousand Rwandan Hutus living in refugee camps in the region to their fate.

The Hutus fled Rwanda for fear of reprisals for the Hutu-led genocide of half a million Tutsis and Hutu moderates in 1994.

But now these refugees have risked returning to Rwanda because of the terrifying fighting in Zaire.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"We are afraid of the bombs.. we are afraid of the bombs. All the people here are very afraid so that we are going somewhere -- where we don't know."
SUPER CAPTION: Refugee

Goma is at the base of this volcano, which stands just over the border between Zaire and Rwanda.

The sounds of shelling can be heard even this far away - a reminder to the refugees of what they have fled and the dangers of returning.

Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter:   / ap_archive  
Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​
Instagram:   / apnews  


You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...