BUNIA: Local officials said on Friday that over 40 people were killed in attacks on villages in the eastern part of DR Congo. The local sources blamed the CODECO militant outfit for the attacks in the area. The militant group is accused of conducting attacks in three villages in Ituri province of the African country.
Officials says over 40 killed in DR Congo
According to AFP, CODECO is one of the countless armed outfits operating in the restless mineral-rich region. The group claims to secure the Lendu community from the army and ethnic group the Hema.
A local administration Matukadala told AFP that they found at least 36 dead bodies in Kilo Etat, eight in Matete village He said that the militants had stormed at about 0500 GMT, with the country’s army responding about three hours later.
Robert Basiloko, a local leader said that as many as 43 people including five children were killed in the attacks. He said that they are tired of the daily deaths in the region.
The eastern part of Congo is overwhelmed by several armed groups, many of which are a legacy of wars in the region that broadened in the 1990s and 2000s. Ituri province is one of the violence flashpoints, where assaults claiming dozens of lives are routine.
