Two Park Rangers Killed as Violence Escalates in Virunga National Park, DRC

One of the most dangerous jobs in the world, has to be protecting mountain gorillas in the DRC. Two more rangers lost their lives this morning while on patrol in Virunga National Park, home to a third of the world's remaining population of mountain gorillas. One of the rangers, Paluku Matembela, killed in today's attack, leaves behind a 6 month-old son and a 14 year-old daughter. Even more tragic is the fact that the children lost their mother only 6 months earlier so they are now orphans. The violence in and around Virunga National Park has been building up steadily since April, 2012.

It is a tremendous blow, not only to the mountain gorillas hanging on for survival, but also of course for the communities living near the park. Just a year ago, Virunga was hosting record numbers of tourists, a lodge was built and local community projects were benefiting directly from the tourist dollars. To date 136 rangers have lost their lives protecting this unique environment. Please help the families of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice by donating directly to Virunga National Park. I know Emmanuel de Merode the park director very well, and can guarantee that every cent of your donation will be used with utmost discretion.