TKings of the UN mission and at least twelve protesters were killed in two towns in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, the second day of protests against the United Nations, accused of ineffectiveness in the fight against armed groups.
In Butembo, the third city in the province of North Kivu, “three dead among the members of Monusco (UN Mission in the DRC), two Indians and a Moroccan, and one injured” were recorded and on the “side of the demonstrators , seven dead and several injured,” Colonel Paul Ngoma, head of the urban police, told AFP.
They are “a Blue Helmet and (of) two members of the United Nations Police”, said Monusco in a statement, adding that “attackers violently snatched weapons from elements of the Congolese National Police and fired at point-blank range at our peacekeepers”.
The UN mission “strongly condemns this attack which nothing justifies”, she added.
According to a press release from the Royal Moroccan Army, the slain Moroccan blue helmet “succumbed to his wounds caused by gunfire”.
In the afternoon, the situation was still very tense in Butembo, an important commercial hub where activities were paralyzed throughout the day.
In front of a Monusco base, demonstrators were dispersed by the security forces, according to several witnesses. “Among these young people, we find weapons,” said Colonel Ngoma.
In Goma, the provincial capital, the spokesman for the Congolese government, Patrick Muyaya, reported “at least five dead” among the demonstrators, promising to return in a press conference “to the human and material toll, as well only the consequences to be drawn” from these demonstrations.
An AFP correspondent on the spot noted the death of a demonstrator, hit in the head by a bullet apparently fired from inside the Monusco logistics base around 11:00 a.m. (09:00 GMT). A Congolese army ambulance then picked up the body.
Early in the morning, hundreds of demonstrators had invaded the surroundings of the Monusco logistics base in Goma and attacked the mission’s transit camp located outside the city center.
“We no longer want Monusco”, “bye bye Monusco”, chanted posters of this “campaign”. The Congolese security forces had difficulty containing the crowd around the logistics base.
“We confirm having received 28 gunshot wounds yesterday and this morning we have just received 8 gunshot wounds. Some are in critical condition. But we have not yet recorded any deaths at home,” Serge told AFP. Kilumbiro, in charge of the administration of the CBCA Ndosho hospital, in Goma.
“Looters”
In the DRC, demonstrations are regularly organized to demand the departure of the Blue Helmets, accused of ineffectiveness in the fight against dozens of local and foreign armed groups which have destabilized the east of the country for nearly 30 years.
In Beni, a town 350 km from the capital of North Kivu, activities were paralyzed by anti-Monusco demonstrators.
In several neighborhoods, protesters burned tires. Gas stations remained closed as well as shops and markets.
Soldiers are deployed on national road No. 4 which leads to the local Monusco base.
On Monday in Goma, hundreds of demonstrators had already taken to the streets at the call of civil society organizations and President Félix Tshisekedi’s party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS).
After storming the Monusco headquarters and its logistics base, they broke windows, walls and looted computers, chairs, tables and valuables.
The Congolese government had condemned “any form of attack against United Nations personnel and installations”, promising that “those responsible (will be) prosecuted and severely punished”.
Present in the DRC since 1999, MONUC (UN Mission in Congo) which became Monusco (UN Mission for Stabilization in the DRC) in 2010, currently has more than 14,000 peacekeepers. It is one of the largest and costliest UN missions in the world, with an annual budget of one billion dollars.
26/07/2022 20:29:11 – Goma (DR Congo) (AFP) – © 2022 AFP