Insurgents in eastern Congo have executed at least 17 people

At least 17 people have been killed by rebels in eastern Congo, local authorities said on Monday. 

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 people were kidnapped while driving on the road and then killed by a CODECO militia  in Djugu territory in Ituri province over the weekend, Colonel Ruphin Mapela Mviniama told The Associated Press by phone. 

 

 “They attacked three vehicles and drove them to Petshi, their stronghold, in Valendu Dyatsi district. The district head confirmed that he had executed 17 people, including the drivers of  three vehicles," he said.

 

 Since the area is controlled by rebels, it is difficult to investigate what happened, Mviniama said. 

 

 Fighting between CODECO, a loose coalition of various ethnic Lendu militia groups, and Zaire, the predominantly ethnic Hema vigilante group, has been ongoing since 2017 but has recently intensified. At least 32 civilians have been killed by CODECO in the past month, according to local officials. In December, the United Nations said the insurgent group was expanding its areas of control, attacking Congolese civilians and military personnel and collecting taxes from communities in  areas  it occupied. The killings come amid escalating violence in eastern Congo, where the conflict has simmered for decades, while more than 120 armed groups  in the region are fighting, most for land and control of  valuable mineral mines, while some groups try to protect their communities .

 

 In neighboring North Kivu province, the situation is worsening as the M23 rebel group, which has been inactive for almost a decade and returned in late 2021, continues to seize parts of the territory and kill civilians. 

 

 According to the United Nations, more than a million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in North Kivu, Ituri and South Kivu provinces. Ituri militias such as CODECO and allied Democratic Forces allied with the Islamic State group are exploiting the government's focus on M23 in North Kivu province and causing widespread displacement, the UN branch said. 

 

 The Congolese authorities are asking the Congolese government to send military reinforcements to secure the roads in the region so that people can move freely.