GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP)— Swelling violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has displaced some 237,000 people since the start of the year, the United Nations (UN) said Friday.

“Escalating clashes between non-state armed groups and the Congolese army in North and South Kivu provinces are intensifying one of the world’s most alarming yet under-reported humanitarian crises,” Eujin Byun, spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency UNHCR, told reporters in Geneva.

The conflict, she warned, was “marked by widespread human rights violations and massive forced displacement”.

Byun pointed out that the two provinces were already home to 4.6 million internally displaced people, making DR Congo “one of the world’s largest hosts for people uprooted within their own borders”.

The Rwanda-backed M23, considered a “terrorist movement” by Kinshasa, has seized vast swathes of territory in eastern DRC since its resurgence in 2021.

The area, which is rich in natural resources, has been plagued by different conflicts for 30 years.

The M23 armed group has gained ground in recent weeks and earlier this month took control of Masisi, the administrative capital of the Masisi territory in North Kivu province.

From January 1 to 6 alone, intense fighting in the Masisi and Lubero territories forced around 150,000 people to flee their homes, Byun said.

She said many initially sought safety in Masisi territory, northwest of Goma, the territory’s main town, only to be displaced again as violence spread.

“The town remains engulfed in uncertainty, with civilians facing ongoing violence, including forced recruitment, and suspicion from armed actors,” she said.

Despite the volatile security situation, around 25,000 displaced people had meanwhile returned to Masisi-Center following a temporary lull in violence on January 4, but fled again days later as fresh fighting broke out.

At the same time in South Kivu’s Fizi territory, UNHCR pointed to local government reports indicating that some 84,000 people were now displaced and it had requested international humanitarian assistance.

“Civilians in both regions are enduring indiscriminate bombings and sexual violence,” Byun warned, decrying that the use of heavy weaponry had caused “numerous civilian casualties, including children”.

The UN refugee agency cautioned that the ongoing violence had severely limited humanitarian access, leaving the displaced in desperate need of shelter, food, clean water and medical care.

“Already dire humanitarian conditions are worsening rapidly, and access to these vulnerable populations is severely restricted by insecurity, roadblocks and the presence of violent armed actors,” Byun said.

She said fighters were reportedly using people’s homes as shelters, “endangering residents by blurring the distinction between combatants and civilians”.

UNHCR said it was ready to provide assistance as soon as access is restored, but stressed more funds were needed.

The agency has said it needs $226 million to provide aid in DR Congo this year. So far, less than 10 per cent of that amount has been received.