Congo rebels accuse rivals over new fighting

KIGALI, Rwanda (Reuters)- - Fighting between rival rebel factions erupted on Wednesday for the second time this month in the Ugandan-controlled east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, rebel officials said.

A spokeswoman for Ernest Wamba dia Wamba, who heads the RCD-ML rebel movement, blamed militiamen loyal to his rival Mbusa Nyamwisi for sparking the latest battle in the northeastern town of Bunia on Wednesday afternoon.

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"They are attacking the professor's residence, they're trying to kill us," dia Wamba spokeswoman Colette Ramm told Reuters by satellite phone.

Ramm complained that Ugandan troops deployed in Bunia were supporting Nyamwisi despite statements by the Ugandan army that it still backed dia Wamba and considered him president of the RCD-ML.

"We called the Ugandan commanders here but they're giving us the run around. We then called (the Ugandan capital) Kampala and they said we are lying. They said it was calm."

The sound of gunfire was clearly audible as Ramm spoke.

The RCD-ML is one of several rebel factions, backed by Uganda and Rwanda, fighting in a broader war to oust Congolese President Laurent Kabila, whose army is supported by troops from Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia.

But in recent months, opposing factions within the RCD-ML have taken up arms against each other.

A senior U.N. official said from the Congolese border town of Goma on Wednesday that more than 600,000 civilians had been displaced by an upsurge in fighting in rebel-held parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo over the last few months.

Refugee total rises

The new figure brought the total estimated number of displaced people in the northern and eastern parts of the country alone to 1.6 million, said Charles Petrie, head of the U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs for eastern Congo.

The Ugandan army said last week it had restored order to Bunia and foiled an attempted "coup" against dia Wamba mounted by Nyamwisi.

But Ramm said Congolese soldiers loyal to Nyamwisi -- who still claims the rebel presidency -- have patrolled the town this week with Ugandan troops.

She said dia Wamba was holed up at his residence with only a small guard of Congolese soldiers to defend him, while Ugandan troops manning tanks outside the residence had orders not to get involved in the battle.

Ugandan army spokesman Major Phineas Katirima said from Kampala he had no information on the fighting and had not yet been able to contact Ugandan commanders in Bunia.

Ramm said Ugandan Brigadier-General Wamala Katumba, the overall commander of Ugandan troops based in the Congo, had tried last week to force dia Wamba to leave Bunia, but the ageing professor had refused.

Ugandan officials say they were simply trying to solve the situation without using force and had invited dia Wamba and Nyamwisi to hold talks in Kampala.

Ramm accused senior Ugandan officers, including powerful Brigadier-General James Kazini, of openly supporting Nyamwisi and sending weapons across the border this week to prepare for the fighting.

Clashes between the two factions in Bunia last week left several dozen people dead.

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