At least 22 civilians were killed Sunday in a new attack on an IDP camp in Ituri, northeastern Congo, just a week after a similar attack with 29 dead in another nearby camp, the local Red Cross reported.
“After the attack on an IDP camp in Ivo on Sunday (yesterday), twenty bodies were buried in two mass graves, then two wounded who were also buried, increasing the number of victims to 22,” he told AFP. Mambo Babu Mans, Red Cross coordinator in Dzhugo, Ituri.
He blamed paramilitaries of the self-proclaimed Coopérative pour le développement du Congo (CODECO) for the massacre.
Experts from the Kivu Security Barometer (KST), which has observers in the area, gave the same report to the French Agency.
The spokesman for the armed forces in the area, Lieutenant Jill Ngongo, said that “the attacking members of CODECO were repulsed”, without giving any report of casualties.
The head of European diplomacy, Giuseppe Borrell, for his part called for a “decisive” response.
“The European Union condemns the new atrocities committed by paramilitaries against the civilian population, especially internally displaced persons,” he said on Twitter. He demanded “austerity against the perpetrators” and “support and justice for the victims”, something necessary “for lasting peace in the region”.
The Ituri area, where there are gold deposits, has been plagued again by violence since late 2017, when the paramilitary organization CODECO, which claims to be defending the interests of the Lentos, the region’s tribal members, began to operate.
In other attacks Saturday night, “five civilians were killed” in the Iroumou area, while “four civilians” were killed near Bounia, the capital of Ituri, Isaac Niakouklinda, a non-governmental organization official, told AFP.
Since May, Ituri and the neighboring province of North Kivu have been under siege, a measure of exclusion designed to facilitate the fight against armed groups. Political authorities were replaced by army and police officers.
Nevertheless, the massacres and abductions of civilians have not stopped. In Ituri, the previous large-scale massacre was recorded only last Monday, with a death toll of 29 among those displaced in the Drondro camp, not far from Ivo.
SOURCE: AMPE
.
Source From: Capital
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
