BANDUNDU: At least 14 people were killed in an attack on a village in the southwestern Democratic Republic of Congo near the Angolan border (DR Congo).
Kwango provincial government spokesman, Adelard Nkisi told AFP, the victims in Ipongi were killed by bullets and knife attacks.
A religious leader in the village, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that militiamen were arrested soon after the attack on Friday.
14 Killed in Attack on Village in Eastern DR Congo
Symphorien Kwengo, a civil society leader in Kwango province, believes the armed Mobondo movement is behind the attack which was formed in neighboring Mai-Ndombe province last year.
The provincial spokesman said steps were being taken to control the situation.
The conflict started out in Mai-Ndombe province in June last year over a land dispute between the Teke people and other groups.
According to the United Nations (UN) estimates more than 3,000 people have been killed in the conflict between June 2022 and July 2023.
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The DRC’s government says 180 have been killed in the attacks.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a recent report to the UN body has said the body’s mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo is entering its final phase.
In a report to the UN Security Council, he warned that the situation of the country has deteriorated in recent days.
Guterres in his assessment of the conflict in the DRC proposed a responsible withdrawal of the UN’s MONUSCO mission which is continuing for almost 25 years.
