Rebels in DR Congo
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Rebels Carryout Another Massacre in DR Congo, 22 Dead

Islamist rebels hacked to death at least 22 civilians including 13 women in an overnight raid in the DR Congo’s troubled Beni region bordering Uganda, local officials said Sunday.

Members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an Islamist-rooted militia that originated in Uganda, were armed with machetes, Beni region administrator Donat Kibwana told AFP.

“Teams have been mobilized to recover the bodies and bring them back for dignified funerals,” he said.

The victims were farmers including 13 women, said Noella Katsongerwaki, Beni’s civil society president.

Dozens of armed groups have operated in the DR Congo’s restive east for decades despite a UN peacekeeping presence, with recent attacks primarily blamed on the ADF.

More than 100 people have died in assaults blamed on the ADF since November 5.

The latest incident came a day after six civilians were killed in an attack in the regional capital Beni.

DR Congo forces launched operations against the militia in the region in late October.

The ADF has retaliated by carrying out massacres, apparently seeking to discourage civilians from helping the military.

Mounting anger over militia violence has sparked demonstrations in Beni, where local people accuse the UN peacekeeping force MONUSCO of failing to protect them.

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