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The
two girls, aged one-year-old, were found in a village in north
Kivu, a region where a militant group known as the Allied
Democratic Forces (ADF) has stepped up bomb attacks, the UNICEF
children's agency said. The explosives were removed by mine
experts without detonating.
"The intention was with the arrival of police or Congolese
military they would trigger the explosion against the security
forces," Grant Leaity, the UNICEF representative in Congo, told
a media briefing in Geneva.
The increased use of improvised explosive devices was just one
of several "depraved trends" as violence against children
reaches unprecedented levels in the eastern part of Congo, he
said.
"On a daily basis, children are being raped and killed. They are
being abducted, recruited and used by armed groups – and we know
the reports we have are only the tip of the iceberg," he said.
The violence in Congo has caused one of the world's worst and
longest-running humanitarian emergencies, with more than 27
million people facing food shortages, and nearly 5.5 million
forced to flee their homes, according to the U.N. More than 2.8
million children are bearing the brunt of the crisis.
The twin sisters, who have not been identified, are now
recovering from malnutrition at a U.N. centre before being
placed in foster care. Their parents had been killed in an
attack believed have been carried out by the ADF.
Although making a good recovery from malnutrition, the mental
scars could last a life-time, Leaity said.
"You would not be able to imagine what they have been through,"
he added.
(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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