At Least 60 People Killed In Militia Attack In Eastern D.R.C

At least 60 people have been killed in a militia attack at a displaced persons’ camp in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the head of a local humanitarian group and a camp resident.

According to the Army and the UN,  CODECO militia was responsible for the killings at about 2am local time at the Savo camp near Bule in Ituri province

Ituri army spokesman Jules Ngongo confirmed the attack by CODECO and gave a provisional toll of about 20 dead.

Congolese troops came into contact with the militia Tuesday night but the assailants changed direction and got past them to reach the camp, he said.

CODECO is one of an array of militias operating in eastern Congo amid longstanding tensions over land and resources.

Its fighters have killed hundreds of civilians in Ituri and forced thousands to flee their homes, according to the United Nations.

In recent months it has targeted displacement camps, where some people had settled after fleeing other attacks by CODECO.

Charite Banza Bavi, president of the humanitarian group for the Bahema-North area, put the death toll at 63.

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said in a statement that Initial reports indicate that as many as 59 civilians were killed and a further 40 injured.

Two students at a school supported by the NRC were among the dead, it added, and the assailants had used both guns and machetes.

The Savo displacement site is home to 24,000 people, among 1.7 million displaced in Ituri province, the NRC said. At least 1,200 civilians were killed in Ituri province in 2021.