DR Congo: 49 dead in clashes between army, rebels

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo

At least 37 rebels and 12 soldiers were killed over four days of fierce fighting in Beni, northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), said a top general.

“We neutralized 37 ADF [Allied Democratic Forces] fighters and, unfortunately, 12 of our soldiers fell on the battlefield,” Gen. Sylvain Ekenge, deputy spokesperson for the Congolese army, told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday.

He claimed the Congolese army has reduced ADF’s influence in the region by 80%.

More than 300 civilians have been killed in what are seen as retaliatory attacks since Congolese forces launched an offensive against armed groups in eastern Congo at the end of last October, according to a local NGO, the Study Centre for the Promotion of Peace, Democracy and Human Rights (CEPADHO).

The ADF rebel group – which originated in neighboring Uganda in the 1990s – has been attacking and killing civilians in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo for over two decades.

ADF rebels have set aside their political demands, and are mostly involved in trafficking of minerals in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, which is rich in gold.