Over the weekend, between 10 and 15 civilians lost their lives in attacks in the Beni region of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Local sources attribute these new attacks to ADF rebels affiliated with the Islamic State.
Pepin Kavota, a civil society leader in Beni, emphasized the urgent need for authorities to halt these acts of brutality. Furthermore, Kambale mentioned that the assailants not only carried out deadly attacks but also targeted a health center, looting medical supplies. This incident mirrored a similar one two weeks prior in the Beni commune of Mangina, where 10 people lost their lives.
Colonel Ngongo Mayanga, the mayor of Mulekera, provided a provisional death toll of more than 10 civilians from the recent attacks. He indicated that efforts were underway to collect the bodies and that the military was deploying in large numbers to confront the threat.
The ADF, originally a predominantly Muslim Ugandan rebel group, has operated in eastern DRC for three decades, causing the deaths of thousands of civilians. In 2019, they pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, which regards them as its central African arm. Additionally, the group is implicated in recent attacks on Ugandan territory. In late 2021, both Kampala and Kinshasa initiated a joint military operation against the ADF, aiming to eradicate the group, but thus far, the efforts have not been successful.
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