Born as Zaire (renamed in 1997), possessing vast mineral riches and nearly unanimously Christian, the DRC has followed a familiar African pattern: Western colonisation followed by independence, civil war, fragmentation and dictatorship. The current situation, as summed up by Freedom House: “political corruption, weak rule of law, and violence”. For the past two decades, a Uganda-born rebel movement has taken root in eastern DRC, obtaining the support of jihadist organisations. A 2017 United Nations report concluded that the increasingly Islamist rebel movement has been responsible for “widespread violations of human rights and international humanitarian law”.
Congolese military ‘culpable’ in ADF’s North Kivu massacres
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the situation in the eastern province of North Kivu, which shares borders with Uganda and Rwanda, is still volatile and a source great concern. Eight members of a local church were massacred on 9 September in the latest in a series of attacks. […]
Three killed, three kidnapped as ADF Islamists strike again in eastern DRC
Three people were hacked to death with machetes while three others were kidnapped in a raid carried out by armed men on Saturday, 2 September, in Lahe-Malolu/Vemba village, situated 12km from Beni, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s volatile eastern region of North Kivu. Speaking to the UN-based Radio […]
DRC: grandmother forced to live in classroom after husband and friends murdered
Marie, a 73-year-old Congolese woman, had lived in a war zone for two decades when rebels attacked her village in North Kivu province again, killing her husband and causing her to flee with her family to find shelter in a school. She thinks it was probably a year ago when […]
DRC clergy call for ‘unconditional’ release of kidnapped priests
Catholic church leaders from the diocese of Butembo-Béni, in the volatile province of North-Kivu, in north-eastern DRC, have called for the release of their fellow priests, kidnapped by unknown armed men ten days ago. Fr Pierre Akilimali and Fr Charles Kipasa were kidnapped by about ten armed men in camouflage, […]
Two priests kidnapped in eastern DR Congo
Two Catholic priests were kidnapped by unknown armed men during the night of Sunday 16 July in their parish of Beni-Butembo, in the volatile province of North-Kivu, in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Fides reports. According to a note sent to Fides by CEPADHO (a local NGO […]
Are attacks on DRC churches religiously motivated?
Amid the increasing political unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo, senior Catholic leaders have reported increasing attacks on church properties, and the intimidation and even torture of clergy. Below, World Watch Monitor’s Africa Bureau Chief, Illia Djadi, gives his perspective on what’s driving the new wave of violence. What […]
‘If Bin Laden’s disciples are seen as terrorists, why should we wonder about the ADF in DRC?’
World Watch Monitor speaks to Nicaise Kibel’Bel Oka, editor of “Les Coulisses” (Behind the Scenes) magazine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mr. Oka recently published a book (in French): “The advent of jihad in DR Congo – the unknown Islamist terrorism of the ADF” (Allied Democratic Forces). WWM: Is […]
DRC – more reports allege ‘caliphate’ in N. Kivu
The International Business Times UK writes about the apparent Islamic agenda of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. World Watch Monitor recently highlighted a UN report stating the same concern. Three decades since its start in Uganda in the 1990s, “the mysterious rebel […]
UN report highlights Islamists’ role in DRC violence
Over the Christmas weekend, more than 40 people were killed in the city of Beni and neighbouring communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Now a new report by the UN Panel of Experts on the DRC sheds new light on the presence of Islamist militants, which has caused […]
DRC: church deacon released after demonstration
A kidnapped church deacon has been released in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), following demonstrations in the village where he works as a hospital apprentice. Godefroid Paluku was kidnapped on 18 November on the Kiwanja-Ishasha road in the Rutshuru territory of the eastern North Kivu province. He was on […]