IS-linked rebels kill 66 civilians in east Congo
Fighters with the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which has ties to IS, killed civilians in the area of Irumu in the east of the country bordering Uganda. The attack comes as eastern Congo may see an end to its ongoing war with M23, a separate rebel group which is backed by Rwanda, another of Congo's neighbours.
Jean Tobie Okala, the spokesperson for the United Nations mission in Ituri in eastern Congo, called the attack a "bloodbath."
"Around 30 civilians were killed between Thursday and Friday, July 11, in the Walese Vonkutu chiefdom, Irumu territory, in Ituri," said Okala in a statement to the Associated Press.
"Based on information from civil society, the death toll has risen from 31 to 66 civilians killed."
The ADF is a Ugandan Islamist group that operates on both sides of the porous border.
All the victims, including women, were killed with machetes, said the president of a local civil society, Marcel Paluku. The number of people taken hostage is unknown.
The attack is suspected to be in response to an escalating bombing campaign by joint Congolese and Ugandan forces that started on Sunday.
The number of ADF fighters in Congo is unclear, but they are a significant presence in the region and regularly attack civilians. The group originated in the late 1990s in neighbouring Uganda and became affiliated with IS in 2019. Muslims make up about 10 per cent of the Congolese population, most of them in the east.
In recent years, attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces have intensified near Congo's border with Uganda and spread towards Goma, eastern Congo's main city, as well as the neighbouring Ituri province. Rights groups and the United Nations have accused the ADF of killing hundreds of people and abducting even more, including a significant number of children.
In December, the ADF killed at least 10 people and abducted several more in another village in North Kivu.
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7NEWS
a day ago
- 7NEWS
CHRIS REASON: As PM charms China, Australia hosts 19-nation war games with eyes on Beijing
The timing was as extraordinary as it was unfortunate. The very week Prime Minister Anthony Albanese chose to go charm China, Australia's armed forces begin training to go to war with them. It's quite the diary clash; his appointments secretary might need to reconsider their position. Exercise Talisman Sabre. It's locked in around the same time every two years and has been since 2005. And this year was the biggest, most ambitious, and significant iteration of them all: 19 nations, 40,000 troops, all coming together to focus on just one increasingly troubling adversary: China. There was a time Talisman would rattle that sabre at a so-called 'unknown adversary' and the assembled press and generals would wink and nod their heads, knowing that was code for the People's Republic. Like fine China itself, identification was always handled with care. Not anymore. The fingers of 19 nations are firmly pointed at the neighbourhood rogue; happy to point China out. 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Canberra Times
2 days ago
- Canberra Times
Defence bureaucracy grows while ADF falls 3700 recruits short of target
The government is also planning to include citizens from Papua New Guinea under its plan to allow foreign-born citizens to join the ADF, which, due to significant delays in recruiting processes, saw just three Kiwis enlisted in the army, navy and air force.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
Acting Defence Minister Pat Conroy says ADF is prepared if Chinese spy vessels attempt to observe Talisman Sabre exercises
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