A fighter from the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) attends a military parade in Rumangabo, eastern DR Congo, October 14. Rebel forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo have told AFP they have captured the strategic camp of Rumangabo in the east of the country from government forces, a claim confirmed by UN sources. (AFP/File/Roberto Schmidt)DRCongo Rebels Seize Gorilla Sanctuary,
Government Camp -- Yahoo News/AFP
Government Camp -- Yahoo News/AFP
KINSHASA (AFP) – Rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo were reported Sunday to have seized a national park in the east of the country that is home to more than a quarter of the world's surviving mountain gorillas.
"Rebels loyal to dissident general Laurent Nkunda took over the headquarters of the Virunga National Park and the sector where the gorillas are to be found after heavy fighting with the DRC army in the early hours of the morning," a statement received by AFP from the park said.
"More than 50 rangers were forced to flee through the forest."
"The taking of our headquarters at Rumangabo by the rebels is unprecedented in all these years of fighting," said park director Emmanuel de Merode in the statement.
The park, which has a rich variety of animal life and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is home to 200 of the world's surviving 700 mountain gorillas.
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My Comment: The war is bad enough, but these surviving mountain gorillas will just fall prey to poachers and quick buck artists .... this is anthropological disaster.