The UN has said, the UN peace keepers have failed to protect women and child victims of mass rape attacks in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo in the past months. A senior UN official told the Security Council that there has been a significant increase in reports of sexual attacks. More than 240 civilians were assaulted in rebel rapes just 30 kilometers from a UN base. The peace keepers said they only heard about the assault ten days later, but the UN official called their response inadequate. He said, some 260 other rape cases in Congo were reported during his visit. He urged the Security Council to consider targeted sanctions against the leaders behind the attacks.