At least 38 Rwandan militiamen and five democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) soldiers have been killed in clashes this week as DRC's government strives to impose its authority on the country's war-torn east, a United Nations official said on Wednesday. Major Ajay Dalal, spokesperson for the UN peacekeeping mission in North Kivu province, said the fighting erupted after DRC's army deployed a battalion last week made up of reintegrated combatants from a 1998 to 2003 war. "The mixed brigade started patrolling and some of their patrols met with the FDLR [Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda] and there were some clashes," Dalal told Reuters by telephone.Citing casualty figures provided by the DRC army, he said at least 38 militia fighters had been killed during the past two days, compared with only five army dead. The UN mission in DRC (Monuc) had not been able to independently verify these figures, he added.
The fighting took place in jungle about 30km north-east of the North Kivu town of Rutshuru, close to DRC's eastern frontier with Rwanda and Uganda. "Monuc is now patrolling the area," said Dalal. "The present situation is calm but volatile."