Suspected Islamists kill at least 12 in eastern Congo

Suspected Islamist militants have killed at least 12 civilians and burned houses and motorbikes during raids on two villages in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, local human rights groups said on Wednesday.

Fighters believed to be from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan militia active in eastern Congo since the 1990s, attacked the villages of Mutuheyi and Mapendo in Ituri province on Sunday night, the activists said

Christophe Munyanderu, head of a local rights group, said the attackers came from bases in nearby North Kivu province and killed the 13 people, burned four motorbikes and torched six houses.

Since launching a joint military operation against the ADF in November, Congo and Uganda claim to have captured several of the ADF’s jungle camps, but the militia’s attacks on civilians have not stopped.

The ADF pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in mid-2019. Islamic State has in turn claimed responsibility for some of the ADF’s violence, including bombings in Uganda and Congo late last year.