UNICEF’s Representative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Grant Leaity condemned on Friday heinous acts of violence against children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. According to a press release, the conflict has resulted in one of Africa’s largest displacement crises, with children enduring the worst of it all. Leaity further commented:

Violence against children in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has reached unprecedented levels. There are few worse places, if any, to be a child.  The country has the world’s highest number of UN-verified grave violations against children in armed conflict.

Leaity specifically mentioned rape, abduction, murder, and the deployment of improvised explosive devices as examples of criminal acts committed against children in the DRC. He also described his encounter with a pair of twins from a rehabilitation camp for children liberated from armed groups in North Kivu. Grant noticed that the one-year-olds were terribly emaciated and were strapped to an explosive belt. He also cited a 37% increase in occurrences of sexual and gender violence in North Kivu since 2022.

Leaity has requested financial assistance for children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He also asked the DRC government, African governments, and regional and international organizations to increase efforts to achieve peaceful conflict resolution in eastern DRC.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo continues to be the country with the highest number of serious violations against children, as indicated by the UN’s Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict. The report, released in June, revealed at least 3,377 incidents of human rights abuses against children. According to Save the Children, abducted children were either placed on the front lines or deployed as guards or spies.

The revival of M23, a DRC rebel group, sparked violent warfare in the east. More than 6.1 million people have been internally displaced as a result of the conflicts in the eastern area. In response to the DRC government’s request, the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced in June the opening of a preliminary investigation into alleged war crimes.