At least 61 civilians were slain by Allied Democratic
Forces rebels brandishing machetes and firearms at a burial in east Congo on
Tuesday, according to officials. This is one of the bloodiest attacks carried
out by the group associated with Islamic State in recent months.
The U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group, which keeps
tabs on terrorist activity, said the militants, also known as Islamic State
Central Africa Province (ISCAP), claimed credit for Monday's attack and claimed
to have killed up to 100 Christians.
The SITE report also said that the attack, which
targeted the funeral service in Ntoyo hamlet in the Lubero area of Congo's
North Kivu, had set some 30 houses on fire.
According to local administrator Macaire Sivikunula,
61 bodies have been counted thus far.
"The majority of the victims were killed with
machetes after they were caught off guard at a mourning ceremony in the village
of Ntoyo at around 9 p.m.," he said.
Later Tuesday, authorities told Reuters that another
alleged ADF strike on another town had killed eighteen people.
Although it began as a rebel group in Uganda, the ADF
has been based in the neighboring Congo's woods since the late 1990s, and
Islamic State recognizes it as an affiliate.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has
attempted to mediate peace in east Congo, a mineral-rich region where
Rwandan-backed M23 rebels staged a significant advance this year, as a result
of a recent wave of attacks claimed by the ADF that have increased instability.
More than fifty civilians were killed by the ADF in
several strikes last month, and 38 people were killed in an ADF attack on a
church in July.
MISSING
Colonel Alain Kiwewa, Lubero's military administrator,
stated that since there were still individuals unaccounted for, the death toll
from Monday night might increase.
According to Samuel Kagheni, a local civil society
activist, the attackers not only used machetes but also burned cars and shot
some victims dead.
A neighbor named Alain Kahindo Kinama reported that
many people were attempting to evacuate the area after Congolese troops came on
the site on Tuesday morning.
According to Lieutenant Marc Elongo, a spokesman for
the Congolese army, by the time soldiers arrived, ADF militants had
"already committed the massacre."
The army of Congo and Uganda, an ally, claim to have
stepped up their efforts against the ADF in recent weeks.
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