Goma: Over 300 people injured by bullets and bomb fragments in one month 

This establishment welcomes, with the support of the ICRC, war wounded.

Robert Martini condemned the “unacceptable” non-protection of civilians and the targeting of them during the clashes in North Kivu.

Among these victims, 40% are civilians, he said, emphasizing the need to reduce human suffering:

“What I saw during this visit was in reality only a very brief glimpse of the scale of an extremely worrying humanitarian catastrophe. And we are truly witnessing a large-scale protection crisis facing the civilian population. We are in the process of more than doubling our operational response capacity; in some activities, we triple it. But the most essential point here is that the most effective way to reduce human suffering in situations of armed conflict remains respect for international humanitarian law by the parties to the conflict.

Furthermore, Robert Mardin said he came to Goma to “recall the very clear rules of international humanitarian law, which consist of belligerents taking all precautions to protect civilians, clearly distinguishing between military objectives and populations. Civilians and also civil infrastructure and also observe the principle of proportionality, for example, by avoiding the use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas..."

He also visited the Lushaga displaced persons camp, where 40,000 people have arrived in recent weeks, following recent clashes around Sake. He said he had witnessed “unbearable suffering” and promised to bring the voice of millions of displaced people from North Kivu to decision-makers.

Indeed, the ICRC facilitates access to drinking water for thousands of displaced people around Goma. It also works on-site sanitation to reduce the risk of spreading water-borne diseases including cholera.

But, given the immensity of the needs, the director general of the ICRC promises to continue his advocacy with donors.