The Congolese government said at least 17 people were killed by rebels in the east of the country.
Colonel Reuven Mabila Mfinyama told The Associated Press by telephone that the victims were abducted while crossing a road and then killed by a Kodiko group in Jugo territory in Ituri province over the weekend.
He said: “The rebels attacked three cars and took them to Beachy - their stronghold - in the Vallendo Jazzi area.”
The regional governor confirmed that 17 people had been executed, including three car drivers. Mfiniyama said that the area under the control of the rebel militias makes it difficult to investigate the incident.
Since 2017, there has been fighting between the Democratic Republic of the Congo Development Cooperative (Kodeko), a loose association of various Lendu ethnic militias, and the Hema (Zairian) militia. Clashes have escalated in recent years.
Codeco killed at least 32 civilians last month, according to local authorities. Last December, the United Nations said the rebel group was seeking to expand its areas of control by attacking civilians and the Congolese army, and by taxing communities in areas it controls.
Source: “AB”
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