page_title: 2008 Nord-Kivu campaign
section_title: Diplomatic and humanitarian effort
hierarchical_section_title: 2008 Nord-Kivu campaign / Timeline / Diplomatic and humanitarian effort
caption_attribution_description: English: The first flight of aid from the United Kingdom arrived in nov. 2008 in the Democratic Repb. Congo. Six flights will bring in essential household items for 11,000 displaced families.
context_page_description: The 2008 Nord-Kivu campaign was an armed conflict in the eastern Nord-Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The upsurge of violence in the Kivu conflict saw heavy battles between the Democratic Republic of Congo's army, supported by the United Nations, and Tutsi militia under General Laurent Nkunda.
  The fighting, which began on October 25, uprooted 250,000 civilians — bringing the total of people displaced by the Kivu conflict to more than 2 million. The campaign caused widespread civil unrest, large food shortages and what the United Nations called "a humanitarian crisis of catastrophic dimensions." After a week, a ceasefire was ordered by rebel forces amongst civil and military unrest in Goma. The rebel capture of all territory around Goma created a very fragile atmosphere of peace, caused enormous political damage, and called to question the efficacy of the peacekeepers stationed there. After a short cease-fire ordered by rebel general Laurent Nkunda, fighting broke out on November 17, after which a second ceasefire was called into effect on November 19.
context_section_description: On October 31, 2008, Nkunda declared that he would create a "humanitarian aid corridor", a no-fire zone where displaced persons would be allowed back to their homes, given the consent of the United Nations task force in the Congo. Working with the UN forces around Goma, Nkunda hoped to relocate victims of the recent fighting between his CNDP forces and UN peacekeepers (MONUC). MONUC spokesman Kevin Kennedy stated that MONUC's forces were stretched thin trying to keep peace within and around the city; recent looting by Congolese soldiers had made it harder to do so as incidents arose both within city limits and outside. According to Anneke Van Woudenberg, a Human Rights Watch researcher, more than 20 people were killed overnight in Goma alone. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice contacted Rwandan President Paul Kagame to discuss a long-term solution.
  Also on October 31, 2008, British Foreign Minister David Miliband and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner flew to the region, with the intention of stopping in Kinshasa, Goma, and possibly Kigali. Miliband said that the United Kingdom was providing £42 million in humanitarian aid to the area.
  On November 17, 2008, Nkunda met with UN special envoy and former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo to discuss the ceasefire amongst reports of scattered fighting in the Congo. While he backed the ceasefire, rebel troops were still reported to be active, and would later capture a village by force.
caption: The first aid flight from the United Kingdom being unloaded on November 11, 2008.
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