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Violence has surged across eastern Congo, where conflict has
raged for decades. More than 120 armed groups are fighting in
the region, most for land and control of mines with valuable
minerals, while some are trying to protect their communities.
Armed men from the CODECO militia attacked the Djaiba group of
villages, which is also home to a camp for the displaced, in the
province of Ituri Monday night, Antoinnette Nzale, the leader of
the camp, told The Associated Press. She said 55 civilians died
but added that the death toll is likely higher, as bodies
continue to be retrieved from the burned down houses.
The Cooperative for the Development of Congo, or CODECO, is a
loose association of militia groups mainly from the ethnic Lendu
farming community. The group’s attacks killed nearly 1,800
people and wounded more than 500 in the four years through 2022,
according to the African Center for the Study and Research on
Terrorism.
The United Nations has said some of the attacks could constitute
war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“Almost the entire village was attacked," Nzale said, adding
that the U.N. peacekeeping force known as MONUSCO and Congolese
government troops intervened but were overwhelmed by the more
numerous attackers.
Jean Richard Lenga, chief of Bahema Badjere district, where the
villages are located, confirmed the attack, adding that at least
38 people were killed. He also said the death toll is likely
higher as bodies continue to be retrieved.
Most of the victims were displaced people who were killed with
machetes and firearms, Mumbere David, a resident of Djaiba, told
the AP over the phone.
In September, CODECO fighters killed at least 20 civilians in
Djugu, the same territory that was attacked on Monday night.
The conflict in eastern Congo escalated last month after
Rwanda-backed rebels seized Goma, the capital of North Kivu
province, which is about 350 kilometers (215 miles) south of
Ituri province.
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Associated Press writer Christina Malkia in Kinshasa, Congo,
contributed to this report.
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