At least 50 civilians killed by militiamen in NE DR Congo

KINSHASA: FEB. 2 – At least 50 people were killed by rebels of the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO) in a camp for displaced people in the northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to local sources reached by Xinhua.

Militiamen of the CODECO launched the attack late Tuesday against a site for displaced civilians in Bule village of the Djugu territory, in DRC’s northeastern province of Ituri, killing at least 50 civilians, said the local sources.

An official of the Caritas Internationalis, an organization in charge of the site under attack, confirmed the tragedy when reached by Xinhua, stressing that there are several bodies of the displaced found Wednesday morning.

CODECO is an armed group structured around a religious sect in Ituri. The group is accused of being behind the violence that has been engulfing this gold-rich region since late 2017, after a 20-year lull. The province of Ituri and the neighboring North Kivu province, long troubled by insecurity, have been under siege since May 6 due to violence by armed groups.

-Xinhua