CONGO DR: Security forces kill 1, injure 2 others during anti-govt protests

Security forces loyal to President Joseph Kabila killed one and wounded two others in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital Kinshasa, who were to take part in church-led marches against the authoritarian rule of the incumbent leader.

Reports say armed security forces surrounded Kinshasa’s main churches and blocked roads, as Catholic and evangelical church-goers across Congo had been meant to take to the streets but were restricted.

Sources say the death and woundings occurred in different locations in Kinshasa, as Church groups have become the main opposing force to Kabila who has been in power since 2001.

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

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The incident occurred days after the United Nations warned that the DRC is facing a “humanitarian disaster of extraordinary proportions”.

Reports say the warning is coming as scores of citizens in the southeastern part of the country have been massively displaced as violence is rapidly rising in the region.

According to the spokesperson of the UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR), entrenched intercommunal conflict between several ethnic groups in Tanganyika province was “triggering spiraling displacement and human rights abuses”.

 

 

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