"European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid Hadja Lahbib called the situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) 'catastrophic' in her speech following a meeting with AFC-M23 leaders on Friday in Goma. "There are increasingly blatant violations of international humanitarian law. Our workers are risking their lives trying to save others, and I have reported all sorts of harassment and problems. I am relaying the concerns of international NGOs and UN agencies, which are working tirelessly here and in the region's refugee camps to alleviate suffering," she stated. The AFC-M23 coordinator Corneille Nangaa acknowledged the severity of the humanitarian crisis, though insisted that the areas under AFC-M23 control are the 'most secure in the country'. "The situation is catastrophic, not only in the areas under AFC-M23 control. Today, we must talk about the catastrophic situations in Minembwe, Uvira. They are happening above all in Beni and Ituri, where there are massacres, attacks and everything imaginable," he said. "From now on, humanitarian access will be guaranteed, and we thank her for that." European Commissioner Lahbib is on a mission to the DRC, Burundi, and Rwanda to assess the most urgent humanitarian needs and advocate for unimpeded aid access in eastern Congo. She visited  Goma on Friday after stops in Kinshasa, Bujumbura, and Kigali. It comes as the European Union plans to provide 81.2 million EUR (95,6 million USD) in humanitarian aid across the Great Lakes region. While a larger share, 68 million EUR (80 million USD), is intended to address humanitarian needs within the DRC, the remaining 13.2 million EUR (15.5 million USD) is to help refugees across the Great Lakes. Clashes have continued in eastern DRC despite a ceasefire brokered by the United States and an accompanying economic agreement. Kinshasa has repeatedly accused Rwanda of backing the M23 rebel movement, an allegation Kigali denies. The conflict has left over five million people displaced, as 15 million require humanitarian assistance. About 337,000 Congolese civilians found shelter in refugee camps across neighbouring Burundi and Tanzania. "