MOMBASA, Kenya — Rebels overran an army base and seized the headquarters office of a nearby gorilla park in intensified fighting Sunday in the northeastern corner of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Since August, fighting has driven nearly 200,000 more people from their homes in a region where more than 1.4 million, or about one-fifth of the population, have been displaced, aid officials say.
“It’s significantly worse in that rebels seem to have gained a lot of ground,” said Emmanuel de Merode, director of Virunga National Park, home to 200 mountain gorillas.
Although parts of the park have been under rebel control for months, Sunday’s fighting forced 53 park rangers to flee into the forest as rebels seized control of the headquarters, located atop a strategic bluff.
Rebels also retook control of Rumangabo military camp, north of the city of Goma. Rebels had overrun the camp this month, stealing a cache of heavy artillery and anti-aircraft guns before turning control of the facility over to the U.N.
The U.N. peacekeeping mission dispatched soldiers Sunday along major roads to protect and assist fleeing residents. But heavy fighting continued throughout the afternoon.
Rebel commanders announced on local radio Sunday morning that their offensive was in response to government harassment in a disputed region nearby. U.N. officials questioned the rebels’ claim.
“We can deny that because we are there and haven’t seen any fighting,” said U.N. spokesman Michel Bonnardeaux in the capital of Kinshasa.
Congo’s restive northeast was the epicenter of a five-year regional conflict that killed more than 5 million people, mostly from disease and starvation. The area’s rich natural resources, including gold, have long attracted the interest of neighboring countries, including Rwanda and Uganda.
