Renewed DR Congo fighting threatens rare gorillas

[leftchick]

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5icT8i76hiIoUKxOV71H8U8jdg8JQ


NAIROBI (AFP) — Renewed fighting between the army and renegade troops in the volatile east of the Democratic Republic of Congo poses a fresh threat to critically endangered mountain gorillas, experts said Sunday.

A resurgence in clashes between regular soldiers and troops loyal to cashiered Congolese general Laurent Nkunda has forced rangers to flee the Virunga National Park, the gorillas' habitat, officials said.

"A few rangers returned ... on Friday in an attempt to start locating the mountain gorillas, but were forced to flee after further attacks by armed groups," said Samantha Newport, spokeswoman for Wildlife Direct, a charitable animal welfare organisation led by Kenyan conservationist Richard Leakey.

"The only mountain gorillas found were the five members of the Rugendo family, the remains of the unit that was massacred in July, and they were outside of the park vulnerable to crossfire. Rangers have yet to locate other families," she added.

Virunga park official Norbert Mushenzi expressed concern over the fate of the gorillas, of which only about 700 remain in the wild in the mountains of Rwanda, Uganda and the eastern DR Congo.


http://www.wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/gorilla

Sept. 12.....

The trackers that were sent to Bukima and Bikenge yesterday have just returned to Rumangabo park headquarters after being prevented from entering the park to find the Mountain Gorillas. The army currently controls the area near these two patrol posts after the clashes with the rebels, and would not let the trackers enter the park to start trying to locate the animals.

The army sees everyone as an enemy, including trackers and rangers. So it is just not safe to try anything else at this point.

I can also confirm that Jomba is still under the control of Nkunda’s rebels.

Diddy