Congo (DRC)

UN peacekeepers stepped up their efforts Sept. 8 to prevent a militia operating in the far east of the DRC Congo from taking a key town in North Kivu province, the scene of renewed deadly fighting between Government forces and rebels. Blue helmets fired warning shots this morning to armed militiamen from the CNDP in the vicinity of the town of Nyanzale, according to a press release from the UN mission to the DRC, known as MONUC. The warning shots were aimed at preventing further movements of CNDP elements in the Rutshuru area, especially in Kikuku. (UN News Service)