Militant Attacks On DRC Villages Kill 16 Civilians - Watchdog

Militant Attacks on DRC Villages Kill 16 Civilians - Watchdog

A series of militant attacks on villages in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) claimed the lives of 16 civilians, the Kivu Security Tracker reported on Thursday

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st October, 2021) A series of militant attacks on villages in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) claimed the lives of 16 civilians, the Kivu Security Tracker reported on Thursday.

"At least 16 civilians were killed last night in the villages of Mayele, #Kalembo and Toya (#Beni territory, North#Kivu)," the watchdog said on Twitter.

The Tracker, which is a joint project of the Congo Research Group and Human Rights Watch, suspects the attacks were carried out by insurgents from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) movement. According to the project, at least 944 people have been killed in the regions of North Kivu and Ituri since May 6, when a state of siege was declared.

Numerous rebel and militant groups are active in eastern DRC. The ADF was formed in 1995 and operates in the DRC and Uganda. The group promotes radical islam and is labeled terrorist by Uganda. The United Nations has blamed hundreds of civilian casualties on the ADF since 2014.