Paris  - A French aid worker was raped an robbed by several armed men in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Le Parisian newspaper said in its internet edition on Friday.

The men, who wore uniforms, robbed a group of aid workers, among them three women. The two other women were also victims of sexual aggression, the paper said.

It remained unclear whether the culprits were members of a rebel militia or soldiers of the Congolese army. The non-governmental organization the victim worked for was not named.

The aid workers were urgently repatriated to France where the women, who are all in their early 20s, receive psychological treatment, and are expected to file charges.

They had been working in Goma, the capital of North Kivu province which has been the centre of ongoing fighting, for several months.

Rape is used as a targeted means of warfare in Congo, but up to now very few cases of Western victims have been known.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy plans to travel to the region in March to promote a new peace initiative to stop the fighting between the army and several rebel groups in the commodity-rich eastern part of the country.

Hundreds of thousands of civilians refugees suffer in camps lacking food and basic hygiene. (dpa)