Seven Congolese refugees killed by stray rocket

KAMPALA, Dec 7 (Reuters) Seven Congolese refugees were killed and 20 wounded when a stray rocket from fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo exploded near a refugee camp in Uganda, the United Nations said today.

''We know 20 people were wounded, 7 were killed. The 20 wounded were taken to hospital'' after the incident yesterday, Roberta Russo, a spokeswoman for the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR, told Reuters.

The Ugandan army reported on Wednesday that some 12,000 refugees had fled across the border into western Uganda's Kisoro district to escape fighting between rebels led by dissident General Laurent Nkunda and the Congolese army.

But Russo said 5,000 had already started crossing back after the Congolese army recaptured and secured the town of Bunagana, 15 km (9 miles) from the border, from Nkunda's forces.

Nkunda's men have fought fierce battles with the army and UN peacekeepers in the past month, including one in which 150 rebels were killed -- the highest recorded death toll involving UN peacekeepers in Congo.

''We've confirmed the (present) number of refugees. There are 7,000,'' Russo said. ''The feeling is they want to go back as soon as possible.'' The UNHCR is working with other U.N. agencies to prepare humanitarian aid should some refugees decide to stay, she said.

The Ugandan army says it fears Congo's violence could spill over into western Uganda, and believes the chaos in eastern Congo has enabled Ugandan rebels to use it as a base for cross-border attacks.

But army spokesman Major Felix Kulayigye said the rocket was an accident and did not indicate a general security threat.

Nkunda says he is fighting for the rights of Congolese Tutsis of Rwandan origin who some say are persecuted.

During Congo's 1998-2003 war involving six neighbouring countries and a patchwork of militias, he fought alongside Rwandan-backed rebels hunting Hutu militiamen responsible for Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

The latest clashes came as Joseph Kabila -- Congo's first freely elected president for more than 40 years -- was inaugurated yesterday, concluding a peace process that it is hoped will stabilise the huge, mineral-rich nation.

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