Suspected rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) have killed four people and injured several others in an attack on Ndalia commercial centre along Komanda-Luna road in Irumu territory, Ituri Province Eastern Democratic of Congo.
According to locals, the rebels attacked the area on Sunday evening. In addition to killing people, the rebels also burnt two motorcycles. One of the survivors, who preferred anonymity, says that the rebels first attacked the neighbouring Kepedo before advancing to Ndalia commercial centre where they set fire to a house.
He also says that one of the victims, a motorcyclist was shot while returning from the field. He also says that an unspecified number of residents were injured and rushed to hospital for treatment.
Lt. Jules Ngongo, a Congolese army spokesman in Ituri, says that government soldiers who were escorting a convoy of vehicles intervened and repelled the rebels before causing more damage. Ngongo did not divulge details into the attack.
Meanwhile, Congolese forces rescued eight people from the hands of ADF rebels in the forest of the chiefdom of Walese Vonkutu on the Komanda-Luna road, south of Irumu territory, Ituri province.
Lt. Ngongo says that the rescue happened during a combat patrol organized by the FARD. He says that rescued victims are among those who were abducted on the night of February 19, 2022, from the Luna-Foner village and others on Feb 21.
Ngongo adds that all rescued victims among them two women and a child are in good health and have been reunited with their families. One of the victims narrates that after their abduction, they were taken into the forest where they travelled through several villages including Mutueyi and Bianei.
He explains that during their captivity, ADF rebels would make them go back and forth from one area to another almost every day. He says that after several days of suffering, they were able to escape thanks to the intervention of FARDC soldiers. He adds that though they managed to leave the bush, they left other locals still in the hands of the ADF rebels including a 60-year-old man.
More than 900 people were killed by Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels in Beni territory, in North Kivu province the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, according to an assessment report by the Network for Human Rights (REDHO). According to REDHO coordinator Muhindo Wasivinywa, the victims were killed through shooting, burning, cutting, and strangulation.
