DR Congo, Iraq, Tunisia,

Today's three stories you should know.

Jun 12, 2023

DR Congo

At least 46 people, about half of them children, have been killed by a militia at a camp for displaced people in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The UN called the incident “a vile attack” and a local leader said that people had been shot, hacked and burned to death inside their homes. Officials blamed the notorious CODECO militia, which has been behind several recent massacres, for the killings. Scores of armed groups operate across east Congo, where they fight for territory and resources.

Iraq

Iraq today urged countries to take their citizens back from a massive camp in Syria that houses thousands of wives and children of ISIS fighters. The Al-Hol Camp, which is near Syria’s border with Iraq, has become a “source of terrorism” and a “dangerous epicenter” for ISIS gatherings, a spokesman for the foreign ministry said. Most of the people living in the camp are Iraqi or Syrian but an area known as the Annex is home to about 8,000 women and children from some 60 different countries. Despite constant requests, most nations have been reluctant to take their citizens back.

Tunisia

A delegation of European leaders, including the head of the European Commission and the prime ministers of Italy and the Netherlands, today travelled to Tunisia to promise more than $1bn of assistance to address migration. Tunisia has become one of the main transit points en route to Europe for people fleeing war or poverty in African and Middle Eastern countries. Human rights activists have called the payment blackmail aimed at keeping migrants out of Europe. The increasingly autocratic President Kais Saied, who has recently made a series of racist comments about African migrants, said Tunisia did not intend to be a "border guard" for Europe.