The United Nations has doubled its tally of rapes committed in eastern Congo since July and said it holds partial responsibility in failing to prevent them. The UN now says over 500 women, girls and babies were raped when Rwandan and Congolese rebels stormed the town of Luvungi and another nearby area. It took three weeks for the UN to respond, even though the town is just miles from a UN base. On Tuesday, Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Atul Khare said the UN is partially at fault.

Atul Khare: “While the primary responsibility for protection of civilians lies with the state, its national army and police force, clearly we have also failed. Our actions were not adequate, resulting in unacceptable brutalization of the population of the villages in the area. We must do better.”

According to the UN, over 15,000 rapes were reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo in both 2008 and 2009.