Militia Attack Kills 69 People in DR Congo
At least 69 people have been killed following a series of coordinated militia attacks in Ituri province in the conflict-ridden northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to local and security sources who spoke to AFP on Saturday.
The violence, which occurred in late April, underscores the worsening insecurity in the mineral-rich eastern region, where armed groups have fought for control for more than three decades.
Ituri province, which borders Uganda and South Sudan, has long been a hotspot of ethnic conflict, particularly between the Hema and Lendu communities, whose rivalry has fuelled repeated cycles of deadly violence.
According to reports, fighters linked to the Codeco militia (Cooperative for the Development of Congo), which claims to defend the Lendu community, carried out attacks on several villages on April 28, killing at least 69 people.
The attacks were reportedly carried out in retaliation for an earlier assault by another armed group, the Convention for the Popular Revolution (CRP), which says it represents the Hema community and operates against positions held by the Congolese army near Pimbo locality.
Civil society leader Dieudonne Losa told AFP that more than 70 people were initially killed in the retaliatory violence, while security sources confirmed a death toll of at least 69, including both civilians and militia members.
Losa added that recovery efforts had been severely hampered by the presence of armed fighters in the area, with only 25 bodies so far buried, while several others remain unaccounted for.
A humanitarian source described scenes of devastation, saying bodies were found “strewn on the ground” around Bassa village, one of the hardest-hit communities.
The United Nations mission in the DRC said on April 30 that it had rescued nearly 200 people caught in crossfire during the CRP assault, while strongly condemning the wave of deadly attacks targeting civilians in the east.
On Saturday, the mission reiterated its condemnation of the violence and called for an immediate end to attacks on civilian populations.
A local Hema community organisation, Ente, described the killings as a “massacre” and urged residents to exercise restraint and avoid retaliation despite rising tensions.
The latest violence adds to the long-running crisis in eastern Congo, a region rich in minerals such as cobalt, copper, uranium, and diamonds but plagued by corruption, armed conflict, and mass displacement.
Since early 2025, Ituri has also seen renewed activity by the CRP, a group founded by former warlord Thomas Lubanga, who was convicted by the International Criminal Court in 2012 for recruiting child soldiers.
Fighting between the CRP, the Congolese army, and the Codeco militia continues to fuel widespread abuses, civilian deaths, and displacement, while other armed groups, including the Allied Democratic Forces, remain active in the region.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates that nearly one million people are currently displaced in the province, reflecting the scale of the humanitarian crisis.