The Congolese Army frees 19 hostages from ADF militias in Ituri province

Jan. 1 (EUROPA PRESS) –

Over the past week, the Congolese army has released 19 hostages, including six children, in the hands of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) militias in the troubled northeastern province of Ituri. from the country.

The hostages were released from this extremely violent militia after four days of operations in three towns in the territory of Irumu, as reported by the local administration to the Congolese news agency ACP on Sunday.

“These releases occurred on December 20, 23, 29 and 30 in the villages of Ndalya, Katabeyi and Bwanasura, on the Komanda-Luna axis,” according to the agency’s sources.

Among those released is a two-year-old girl, belonging to a Rwandan-Somali couple from the ADF. Among those released there are also seven women and six men, some of whom have spent seven months in captivity.

According to a recent report by UN experts, since April 2022 ADF attacks have killed at least 370 civilians. The militias have also kidnapped some 374 people since then.

The attacks against civilians were concentrated around the municipalities of Bahema-Boga and Banyali-Tchabi, in Ituri, as well as in the south-east of Beni territory.