A coalition of 84 humanitarian groups has called for an end to the United Nations-backed military operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo, warning of a "disastrous" humanitarian situation in the country.

On Tuesday the groups issued a report saying more than 1,000 civilians have died and nearly 900,000 others have been displaced by fighting between UN-backed Congolese government forces and Rwandan Hutu rebels.

The report sharply criticised peacekeepers with the UN mission, known as Monuc, for supporting a deadly government offensive against the rebels.

"The human rights and humanitarian consequences of the current military operation are simply disastrous," Marcel Stoessel, of the UK-based aid agency Oxfam, said.

"UN peacekeepers, who have a mandate to protect civilians, urgently need to work with government forces to make sure civilians get the protection they need, or discontinue their support."

Hard choices

Mohammed Adow, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Goma, reported that the peacekeepers had little public support even at the start of their mission.

"Now those accusations are coming up again and this time from aid agencies who are working in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

"The UN forces here are caught between a rock and a hard place. Their mandate is to support Congolese forces, but these forces are made up of former rebel groups and they are ill trained, ill-equipped and they don't know much about human rights.

"It will be a huge disaster if the UN withdraws. At the moment it is the UN that is keeping a semblance of law and order in eastern DR Congo, particularly in North Kivu and South Kivu areas."

'Risk of backslide'

Kevin Kennedy, a spokesman for the UN peacekeeping mission in Congo, or Monuc, said the mission will continue to support government forces against the Hutu rebels, known as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).

"The agencies are not saying that Monuc is doing more harm than good. What they are doing is expressing concern over the humanitarian consequences of military actions that are necessary to dislodge [the FDLR]," he told Al Jazeera.

"What they are calling for is more resources so Monuc can be able to do its job better.

"The main conclusion of [the report] is that the elimination of the FDLR should be a top priority for the UN."

The offensive, launched in January, began in North Kivu with the backing of Rwanda, and has subsequently reached into South Kivu with the backing of the UN Security Council.

Adow added: "It's a vast area. This operation is very necessary to pacify this region. Rwanda has always maintained that as long as the Hutu militia men are hiding in eastern DRC, they will not rest."