Seven civilians die in two new attacks blamed on the ADF in eastern DRC

June 22 (EUROPA PRESS) –

At least seven people died on Tuesday in two new attacks blamed on members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group, linked to the Islamic State, in the province of North Kivu, located in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The chief of the town of Mangomba, Willy Malikidogo, has indicated that at first, the assailants broke into this village, Masenge and Makisabo, all of them in Beni territory, where they attacked “farmers who were in their fields”.

Roger Masimengo, from the local civil society, has detailed that four people were killed in Makisabo, while another three people died in the Oicha commune, according to statements made to the Congolese news portal 7sur7 by the Deputy Mayor, Kamabale Kibwana.

“The enemy, part of the ADF, attacked the Mabasele neighborhood around 11:00 p.m. (local time),” he said, before adding that the assailants set fire to “several houses” and warned that there are several wounded “in care.” intensive”, so it is not ruled out that the balance of victims will increase in the coming hours.

Likewise, Kibwana has highlighted that “many civilians” have been reported missing, without for the time being there are details on whether they are in the hands of the ADF, which has increased its attacks in eastern DRC in recent months, despite of the joint operations of the Congolese and Ugandan armies.

The ADF, a Ugandan group created in the 1990s, especially active in eastern DRC and accused of the killing of hundreds of civilians in this area of ​​the country, could be trying to operate again in Uganda, from where it withdrew in 2003. after a series of military operations that drastically reduced its ability to carry out attacks in the country.

The ADF suffered a split in 2019 after Musa Baluku — sanctioned by the United Nations and the United States — swore allegiance to the ISCA State jihadist group, under whose banner he has been operating ever since. The DRC and Uganda signed a defense agreement in December to carry out joint operations in eastern DRC.