UNITED NATIONS, May 31 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations on Friday voiced deep concern over the alarming humanitarian situation in North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Clashes have resumed in several parts of the towns of Masisi, Rutshuru and Sake. Fighting is also moving closer to the city of Kanyabayonga and displacing civilians, many of whom have sought safety in nearby towns, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Kanyabayonga currently hosts more than 100,000 people who have fled violence in Rutshuru and Masisi. Humanitarian operations in Kanyabayonga have been suspended, and at least 48,000 people have been cut off from assistance in the past week, said the office.

The escalating violence risks worsening the already precarious humanitarian situation in North Kivu, which was hosting more than 2.7 million internally displaced people as of last month, warned OCHA.

The office called on all parties to the conflict to abide by international humanitarian law and take immediate steps to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure.

Additional resources for the humanitarian crisis in the DRC are also urgently needed. Five months into the year, the annual response plan that requires 2.6 billion U.S. dollars is just 23 percent funded, said OCHA.

Despite difficulties, humanitarian actors reached more than 3.1 million people in the DRC with vital humanitarian assistance as of March 2024, which is nearly a quarter of the target, it said. Enditem

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