Rebel Groups Allegedly Mastermind Of Murder Of More Than 80 People In Democratic Republic Of Congo

Democratic Republic of the Congo army. (Wikimedia Commons/US Army Africa)

JAKARTA - A Congo's military spokesman said the death toll from the alleged attack by Islamist rebel groups in villages east of the Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday increased to 41, bringing the death toll in the past week since last week to more than 80.

Friday night's attack, in Masala, Mapasana, and Mahini villages, has been carried out by members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), said lieutenant colonel Mak Hazukay, a military spokesman in North Kivu province, Congo.

During Friday night's attack, gunmen used firearms and machetes to attack villagers in the Beni area, local official Fabien Kakule told Reuters.

Vusindi Nick Junior, a local civil society leader, said a local health center had been burned and nine people were injured apart from 41 people who died.

"Several dozen civilians have been victims of ADF in eastern DRC in recent days," EU foreign affairs spokesman Nabila Massrali said, adding there was an urgent need to accelerate efforts to find a political solution.

"Terrorist groups are taking advantage of chaos to expand their grip in areas that are already very unstable," he said.

The ADF, now based in eastern Congo, has pledged allegiance to ISIS and launched frequent attacks, increasingly disrupting the stability of the region where many militant groups are active.

The group is from neighboring Uganda and is thought to have been behind several attacks in the region over the past week, including one attack in Masawu Village that killed 17 people, two civilian leaders said.

On Thursday, five bodies were found in Kabweli and Mamulese villages, according to Justin Kavalami, a member of the civil society who helped search for bodies. On the same day, six bodies were found from a river in Mununze Village, the village head said.

The next day, 13 bodies were found in Makobu Village, said a civilian community leader and village head, bringing the total number of people killed by suspected ADF militants since Tuesday to 82.

Meanwhile, Julien Paluku, former governor of North Kivu, said in X, the Congo's national government needed to do more to address insecurity in the eastern region. The government has yet to make any statements about Friday's attacks, and government spokeswomans have not responded to requests for comment.

"People have the impression, right or wrong, that they are left to face their sad fate," he said.