 Welcome back, you're still watching this now on plus TV Africa to all the parts of the continent. In Congo's Itira province, a rebel upsurge has forced as many as 1.5 million people to flee their homes since the late 2017. The prospect of their return are not good, as attacks have increased significantly in recent months. Details in this report. Married Zidza has lost hope of leaving a displaced people's camp and returning home in the eastern Congolese province of Ituri. Five years ago, she lost both her hands in a machete attack during a raid by militia group Codeco. It is one of the several militias that have destabilized the densely forested province in the Democratic Republic of Congo. 1.5 million people have been forced to flee their homes since late 2017. Nema Tsumbusso is a teacher at this makeshift school in the Kigonzi camp, which houses nearly 14,000 people. It was whole families, the whole village, the whole group. We did not choose this. We had to leave. The prospects are not good. Attacks have increased significantly in recent months. An army spokesperson said on Thursday that Islamist militants killed at least 35 people in an overnight attack on a village in eastern DRC. In retaliation for a military crackdown on rebel activity, Christian Uthiki is the president of the community of victims of war crimes. These atrocities have never stopped. They have continued from 2017 until today. I can tell you today that we count around 17,000 members of our community who have been slaughtered, mainly by Codeco, as well as the FPIC militia, which has allied itself with the former. In Ituri, the UN peacekeeping mission known as Monusco is due to pull out of the area and the rest of eastern Congo by 2024 after its mandate expires. Bintu Keita, the head of Monusco, visited Ituri on March 1, her first in month. She and the local authorities blamed Codeco and a rival militia called Zaire for the spiralling bloodshed and reprisal attacks. The groups could not be reached for comment. Ituri's military governor, Lieutenant General Johnny Luboy and Kashama, said the army was seeking talks with the armed groups while also conducting large-scale patrols with Monusco and building new bases so that it can react quicker to reports of attacks. The departure of Monusco has raised concerns about a looming military shortfall, but in Kashama, said the army intended to plug the gap. And don't forget to hit the notification button so you get notified about fresh news updates.