Christmas was a difficult time for the people of North Kivu, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who have been filled with constant fear and anguish because of the armed groups that are active near the border with Rwanda. In a message to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), a Portuguese Comboni missionary, Fr Marcelo, calls out the militias of “wanting to massacre the population, to take control of the land and steel the natural resources”.