CONGO DR: 33 killed in fresh outbreak of ethnic violence

A fresh outbreak of violence in the north-eastern province of Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo has left no less than 33 people dead according to local authorities.

A UN-sponsored broadcast, said the assailants were eventually forced back by security forces after an unrest broke out between the Hema and Lendu communities in the north-eastern province of Ituri.

Local army spokesman Jules Ngongo told Reuters news agency that state forces had separated the two sides.

Read also: DRC: Authorities block Internet access as protests continue

“It was a case of reprisals by the two communities. According to our information, there were cases of people being decapitated,” he said. Some charities put the death toll at 49 or more.

Reports say the unrest between the two communities is one of several conflicts in DR Congo which have produced a huge amount of refugees with an estimated 200,000 people forced to flee their homes as a result of the violence.

 

 

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