At least 42 people were killed in an overnight attack blamed on Islamic State-linked rebels in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), local authorities said on Thursday.

Voice of America

The attack is said to have occurred in the Mayikengo village in North Kivu province's eastern Lubero region. The local administrator, Alain Kiwewa Mitela, blamed the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an Islamic State affiliate, for the assault.

According to a local official, the assailants told the residents to gather in a market for a meeting and then attacked the crowd with guns and machetes, leaving some "tied up" and "decapitated."

Dw.Com

A DRC military spokesperson confirmed the attack, which followed a similar raid on villages in the same province earlier this week, blamed on the insurgents, in which at least 80 people were reportedly killed.

TRT Afrika

According to local authorities and civilian groups, the death toll from ADF attacks in the DRC this month now totals almost 150. The DRC is also fighting the Rwanda-linked M23 rebels, also mostly operating in the country's east.

The New Arab

Once a Muslim-majority Ugandan rebel coalition, the ADF pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group in 2019 to become its Central African offshoot. Over the past three decades, it gained a foothold in eastern DRC and reportedly killed thousands of civilians.

Barrons

The latest ADF attack is a grim reminder that eastern DRC is facing one of the most serious, complex and neglected conflicts in the world. Joint military operations by Ugandan and Congolese forces against ADF rebels have failed to stop attacks on civilians, while Rwandan-backed M23 are also causing renewed terror. Kinshasa has failed in fighting the armed rebels, and it is the population that is paying a terrible price.

Al Jazeera

ISIL-affiliated rebel fighters blamed after 38 killed in DR Congo attack

There is a 61% chance, that the Democratic Republic of Congo will experience a civil war before 2036, according to the Metaculus prediction community.

DR Congo: At Least 42 killed in Suspected Islamist Rebel Attack

The Spin

Metaculus Prediction

Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters
Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters

DR Congo: At Least 42 killed in Suspected Islamist Rebel Attack

The Spin

Metaculus Prediction

Sign Up for Our Free NewslettersSign Up for Our Free Newsletters

Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters
Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters