New York/Goma  - United Nations peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo should cut all support for the army, which is raping and killing civilians during anti-rebel operations, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.

The New York-based rights body on Monday said its research had found that Congolese soldiers have killed at least 270 civilians since March, most of them women, children and the elderly.

"Some Congolese army soldiers are committing war crimes by viciously targeting the very people they should be protecting," said Anneke Van Woudenberg, senior researcher at HRW.

"MONUC's [the UN peacekeeping mission's] continued willingness to provide support for such abusive military operations implicates them in violations of the laws of war."

UN peacekeepers have been supporting the Congolese army's operation Kimia II, which is aimed at Rwandan Hutu group the FDLR.

The FDLR was formed by militia who fled Rwanda after taking part in the 1994 genocide of 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. It has played a role in the DR Congo's ongoing unrest for over a decade.

HRW documented cases where civilians were decapitated, beaten to death, shot and gang raped - all accusations that have been repeated by other aid agencies and investigators since the operation began.

The UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, Philip Alston, last month accused the army of killing and raping dozens of civilians. He said MONUC had compromised its ability to investigate abuses by becoming party to the conflict.

MONUC chief Alain Leroy on Monday said that the peacekeeping force would immediately withdraw support for an army unit that massacred 62 civilians around Lukweti, 80 kilometres from Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, between May and September.

However, HRW said that stronger action was required to prevent MONUC becoming implicated in the atrocities.

"Peacekeeping officials knew that war crimes were being committed by Congolese government forces, yet eight months into operation Kimia II, they are only now suspending the UN's support to one of the army units responsible," Van Woudenberg said.

"MONUC should immediately cease its support to all of operation Kimia II until abusive commanders are removed and effective measures are in place to protect the civilian population." (dpa)