Two young girls who had been missing since the beginning of last week near Jiba, in Djugu Territory, Ituri, have been found safe and reunited with their family following a joint mobilization by local authorities, community leaders, and Bangladeshi peacekeepers from MONUSCO. The intervention helped bring the children to safety and defuse community tensions that had begun to emerge following their disappearance in a region where mistrust between communities persists amid ongoing armed violence.
A disappearance in a sensitive context
The circumstances surrounding the incident remain subject to different accounts. According to some testimonies, the two children were with their mother in a field near Jiba to harvest crops. She reportedly briefly left them there to look for plantains.
During her absence, armed men allegedly found the children and took them to a CODECO militia base. Other sources describe the incident more directly as an abduction carried out by members of the armed group.
The disappearance quickly caused widespread concern among displaced people at the Plaine Savo site and reignited tensions between the Hema and Lendu communities.
Swift mediation to prevent escalation
As soon as it was alerted, MONUSCO, through its Community Liaison Assistants (CLAs), began consultations with administrative authorities, traditional leaders, and community representatives to prevent the situation from deteriorating.
On Sunday, 16 August 2026, a Mission patrol travelled to Jiba, about a dozen kilometres from Bule. Discussions with local officials from the Dhendro and Dhendo groupings helped establish an atmosphere of trust conducive to a peaceful solution.
Following the discussions, the various parties agreed that the two girls would be handed over to MONUSCO peacekeepers based in Rhoo, a locality near the area where they had been held.
The operation also enabled the evacuation of a woman in her thirties who had been injured during armed clashes approximately three months earlier in the Bule area. After receiving treatment at Jiba Hospital, she had remained there awaiting security conditions that would allow her to be transferred and reunited with her family.
Under MONUSCO protection, the two girls and the injured woman were escorted to the Rhoo displacement site, where they were reunited with their relatives.
Authorities and civil society welcome the intervention
The action was welcomed by local civil society, which viewed it as a concrete illustration of the Mission’s role in protecting civilians through mediation and dialogue among communities.
“This is what we were asking MONUSCO to do. The cooperation has been very open, and this brings joy to the community. When the children went missing, their parents and the entire community were very worried. So you did your best, as we had asked you, to search for the children. And in the end, you found them. This is a good thing. We would like to thank MONUSCO for the work it has done for the community. MONUSCO is here to protect the population… It is therefore important to remind everyone that MONUSCO remains our partner and a partner we can trust,” said Salomon Pinzile Lole, president of Bule civil society.
In Bule, where the parents of the two girls are originally from, news of their return brought immense relief.
A member of a youth organization in Bule also praised the swift intervention:
“The population is very happy with MONUSCO’s prompt action, which was very responsive to the alert from the population.”
According to him, the rapid response helped prevent tensions from escalating and preserve dialogue between the communities concerned.
At the Plaine Savo displacement site, where the girls’ parents live, their disappearance had caused deep concern. Following their return, the relief was visible on everyone’s faces.
Rollande Mawazo Kambonesa, the site manager, expressed her gratitude to the Mission:
“We are truly delighted by MONUSCO’s intervention. The disappearance of the two girls, who were abducted by CODECO, caused serious concern among the displaced people. MONUSCO was able to recover the children and bring them back safe and sound to their extended family.”
Beyond its humanitarian dimension, the intervention appears to have helped strengthen trust between the population and the United Nations Mission.
- Jean-Tobie OKALA
