(IBT) – Millions of people have been killed during conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since 1996 with the eruption of the First Congo war, ended in 1998, and the Second Congo war, also known as the Great War of Africa, that erupted in 1998 and officially terminated in 2003. However, hostilities and frequent attacks on civilians, especially in the northeast, have continued since and there are at least 50 different armed groups currently operating along DRC’s eastern and western borders. As a result, children − who are often displaced and unaccompanied − are likely to become part of these groups, the majority of which have been accused of committing war crimes.
