At Least 44 Civilians Killed in Attacks on Villages in Northeastern DR Congo
Armed attackers struck several villages in northeastern DR Congo’s Ituri province from November 10 to 13. Security and humanitarian sources said at least 44 civilians were killed, while other sources reported higher death tolls as searches continued. The recent violence also threatens the local Ebola response.
Security and humanitarian sources said on November 13 that militants linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) attacked northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo this week, killing at least 44 civilians. The attacks took place in several villages in the Mambasa area of Ituri province from November 10 to 13. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which carried out the attacks, originated in Uganda and pledged allegiance to IS in 2019.
Local official Gabriel Tonge said some victims’ bodies had begun to decompose. Some had been killed with machetes, while others had been shot. An anonymous humanitarian source said 47 bodies had been found and warned that ADF militants were still hiding in the forest and setting ambushes. As the search continued, other local sources estimated that the death toll could rise to 49.
Days before these attacks, the ADF killed 66 people, including 3 healthcare workers, and burned down 3 medical facilities in neighboring North Kivu province. This wave of violence directly threatens the local response to the Ebola outbreak. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the continuing instability is one of the main obstacles to the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
File photo of the scene of an attack in Manzalaho village near Beni, Democratic Republic of the Congo.（VietVance）
The Ugandan and Congolese armies have both sent troops to the area to combat the ADF, but their operations have yet to produce clear results.
Source: VietVance
