UN human rights chief accuses Rwanda-backed rebels of murder and recruitment of children in East Congo

Senegal Dhaka (AP) – The head of human rights in the United Nations alleges that Rwanda-backed insurgents have occupied a second major city in eastern Congo, killing children, attacking hospitals and warehouses to store humanitarian aid.

Volker Türk said in a statement Tuesday that his office “confirmed the summary of the M23 after entering Bukav City last week. We also know that children have weapons.”

He provided no details or mentioned a specific incident, but UN agencies had previously accused Congolese government forces and rebels of recruiting children. The UN Human Rights Commission formed a committee earlier this month that will investigate atrocities, including rapes and killings similar to “summary executions” committed by both sides since the beginning of the year.

Last month, 101 km (63 miles) north captured Goma and occupied 1.3 million Bukavu, the rebels captured 1.3 million Bukavu on Sunday . At least 3,000 people were reportedly killed in the Goma battle and thousands were displaced.

The M23 is the most outstanding of more than 100 armed groups, competing for trillions of dollars in mineral wealth in eastern Congo, which is crucial to many of the world's technologies. According to UN experts, the rebels were supported by about 4,000 soldiers from neighboring Rwanda.

Rwanda accused Congo of recruiting Hutu fighters responsible for the 1994 tutsis and medium Hutus genocide. M23 said it was working to protect the Tussis and Congolese in Rwanda from discrimination and hoped to transform the Congo from a failed state to a modern state – although critics say it was an excuse for Rwanda to participate.

As the 2012 M23 briefly caught and retreated under international pressure, analysts said the rebels were focusing on political power this time.

Decades of combat have displaced more than 6 million people in the region, causing the world's largest humanitarian crisis.