UN and government officials are on a mission to the area since Tuesday, June 7, 2016.

A joint government and United Nations Organisation mission is in the restive region of Pool south of the capital, Brazzaville to evaluate the humanitarian needs of the population and come out with data per sector in order to better address the needs, UN press release said.

The area that witnessed violent confrontations between 1998 and 2003 pitting government forces against the rebel ninja fighters led by Fréderic Bintsamou, alias Pasteur Ntumi, once more became a threatre of violence after the March 20, 2016 presidential election in which, incumbent President Denis Sassou Nguesso won. On April 4, 2016, there were violent demonstrations in Pool.  Government responded by deploying forces to the area to shell Pasteur Ntumi’s operation centres in which was called security operation.

The security operation in Pool has caused untold suffering to the local population, necessitating timely intervention. Shelling by government forces reportedly forced the local population to flee to other localities for safety. International Non-governmental Organisations such as, Amnesty International and the Catholic Church in Congo have all reportedly disclosed that even schools were affected by the shelling.

Reports say the repression is over  but no official  data on the casualties has been published.  On the bases of the recommendations from the seven-day mission, government and its partners would agree on the type of support to give the population affected by the security operation. The Minister of Humanitarian Action, Antoinette Dinga-Djondo reportedly said that displaced people have gone back to their homes, with the exception of about 3,000 people, some of whom are still hiding in the forests.