IRC, Refugees International Urge U.N. Mission in Congo to Protect Civilians

In a letter to U.S. Representative to the United Nations, John Negroponte, the International Rescue Committee and Refugees International call on the United States to support an expansion of the U.N. observer mission in Congo (MONUC).

"The most urgent of the tasks before MONUC is to offer protection to civilians, especially in Ituri district and parts of North and South Kivu," the letter said, stressing that this can only be accomplished if the mission's size and mandate are expanded.

The letter comes as the Security Council meets to consider the future of the U.N. force in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The United States has yet to announce whether it will support a strengthening of MONUC.

Click here for the full text of the IRC and RI letter to Ambassador Negroponte