DR Congo rapes 'defy belief', says UN Published duration 24 September 2010

image caption The UN has already said that peacekeepers did not do enough to protect victims

The UN's human rights chief has said the "scale and viciousness" of mass rapes in DR Congo "defy belief", as a report into the attack was released.

Navi Pillay said that, even for the region, the incident stood out because of the "extraordinarily cold-blooded and systematic way" it was carried out.

Some 300 people were raped by armed militia in the attack in August.

The incident was made worse by "subsequent failings" by UN peacekeeping forces, says Ms Pillay.

UN peacekeeping forces in Democratic Republic of the Congo had not received any specific training on the protection of civilians, and suffered from a number of operational constraints, the report says.

The UN mission in DR Congo (Monusco) has previously admitted not doing enough to prevent the four-day attack, which occurred in the eastern town of Luvungi, and nearby villages, within miles of a UN base.

'Security problems'

The preliminary report, issued by the UN Joint Human Rights Office, said that three groups of armed militia raped 235 women, 52 girls, 13 men and three boys - many "multiple times" - looted more than 900 houses, and abducted 116 people.

Armed groups entered villages, told local people they were there to protect them, before cutting off phone lines and proceeding to attack people, it says.

The UN says the assault was carried out by a coalition of around 200 members of three armed groups - the Mai-Mai Cheka, the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR), and elements close to Colonel Emmanuel Nsengiyumva.

Col Nsengiyumva is an army deserter who has also been involved with the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) rebel group in the past.

The FDLR has previously denied any links to the attack.

Victims interviewed said they believed the purpose of the attacks was to intimidate local people seen by the rebels as government supporters.

Figures could rise further as the investigating team have not yet completed their work in six of 13 villages due to "serious security problems", said UN spokesperson Rupert Colville.

'Impunity'

He said that attacks were still going on in some regions.

Mr Colville told the BBC that prosecutions would be "extremely difficult".

He said they hoped the report would lead to people being arrested and prosecuted, but that it was not easy "in this environment".

"It's very much about this issue of grappling with this chronic problem of impunity and lack of justice in DRC," he said, adding that most victims would not see any kind of justice or compensation.

DR Congo has a shocking reputation for sexual violence, and rape is commonly used as a weapon of war by a number of armed groups who continue to operate.