Due to the revival of fighting between the country's army and rebel militia in the northeast of the country, some 23,000 individuals have left the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
This was announced on Monday by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) of the United Nations.
Since the most recent outbreak of violence last Thursday, 2,500 individuals, according to the UN agency, have arrived in Uganda from the DRC.
In Rutshuru, close to the borders with Uganda and Rwanda, fighting has been ongoing between M23 rebel groups and the Congolese military.
“Since March, the clashes have displaced 186,000 people, bringing the total number of displaced people in Rutshuru territory to over 396,000,” the OCHA said.
The M23 movement, defeated in 2013 by the Congolese army, consists of former soldiers who broke away in 2012 and formed a rebel group.
However, since late March, the rebel group has resumed attacking civilians and military installations in eastern DRC and fighting with the Congolese army.
The Rutshuru region in North Kivu province is rich in mineral resources.
According to the United States, around 130 armed rebel groups are vying for control of DRC’s vast natural wealth, which includes copper, cobalt, gold and diamonds.