#NotATarget | Tomorrow is World Humanitarian Day
Every year on August 19th, we mark our calendars for World Humanitarian Day, a global day of recognition for those who give up their time, talents, and sometimes their safety to help address the needs of the world’s most vulnerable. This year, the focus of World Humanitarian day is on communities around the world who […]
Bringing Local Solutions to Life // Medical Training in CAR
A few weeks ago, our team in the Central African Republic (CAR) joined with community members from the southeastern towns of Obo and Mboki to celebrate the graduation of 16 newly trained medical officers — all of whom have been directly impacted by armed group violence. It was an exciting day for the trainees, who have […]
The LRA Returns to Garamba National Park
Since 2012, Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) leader, Joseph Kony, has relied on illegal ivory poaching to fund continued violence in central Africa. Based on community reports collected through our Early Warning Radio Network and countless interviews with former LRA fighters, we know that Kony frequently orders LRA commanders to poach elephants in Garamba National Park […]
Invisible Children’s Melanie Zawadi on Female Leadership
You may already recognize our Regional Operations Manager, Melanie Zawadi. That’s because she’s been a key leader on our team in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), pretty much since we started working with Congolese communities in 2010. From the day we met her, Melanie has inspired us with her strength, brilliance, and commitment to LRA-affected […]
An Interview with LRA Escapees
“We were in school before. It was our 6th year. Everything was fine.” For the last four years, Camille Marie-Regnault, Invisible Children’s Protection Programs Officer, has worked with our teams in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and eastern Central African Republic (CAR) to ensure that communities in the region have the safety they need […]
Children’s Day in Obo / A Community Unites for Peace
Last month, our friends in Obo, Central African Republic (CAR) celebrated International Day of the African Child with a day full of special events. In support of locally-led efforts to foster peace and prevent violence in the region, our Invisible Children team in Obo worked alongside community leaders and other international organizations to help coordinate […]
Addressing the Needs of Marginalized Populations in Central Africa
Since March, we’ve been reporting information on rising violence collected via our Early Warning Radio Network in central Africa. Just this week, we released our LRA Crisis Tracker Midyear Security Brief, which summarizes trends in armed group violence in eastern Central African Republic (CAR) and neighboring areas of northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) so […]
2017 Midyear Security Brief
Sectarian tensions steadily escalated in eastern Central African Republic (CAR) in the first six months of 2017. In June, violence spread from Haut Kotto and Mbomou prefectures into the communities of Zemio and Mboki in neighboring Haut Mbomou prefecture. Attacks by ex-Seleka, anti-balaka, and armed Peuhl have killed at least 346 civilians in the three prefectures since January […]
A Field Guide to Losing Your Friends // Remembering Nate Henn
On July 11, 2010, 74 people were killed in a series of terrorist bombings in Kampala, Uganda. One of those killed was an American named Nate Henn. He was our friend. Before his death, Nate had dedicated almost two years of his life as a volunteer roadie with Invisible Children. In the spring of 2010, Nate led a […]
Young Boy Escapes After Three Years in LRA Captivity
In 2014, when he was seven years old, Sam* and several other members of his community were abducted by a group of Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) fighters as they were headed for a field outside their community in a remote corner of northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Although many of those abducted with […]