Tag Archives: DRC

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | An influential grouping of Catholic bishops in the Democratic Republic of Congo called for elections to be held on schedule this year and for President Joseph Kabila to step down when his second term ends. Kabila, who has been in power since 2001, is …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Jean-Pierre Bemba, the ex Congolese vice-president handed an 18-year-jail term Tuesday for “cruel” rapes and murders in neighbouring Central African Republic, was once a towering figure in business and politics. Bemba, a once feared warlord now aged 55, was sentenced after being found guilty …

The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | On the eve of his landmark sentencing, lawyers for former Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba Monday gave notice that they will appeal his war crimes conviction and press for a mistrial. Just hours before the once feared militia leader was due back in the …

Lubumbashi, DR Congo | AFP | DR Congo’s disbanded M23 rebel movement has called on the government to agree a new demobilisation scheme following deadly clashes near a camp housing former rebels dissatisfied with their conditions. M23 leader Bertrand Bisimwa said in a statement that the deaths of several people …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Nearly 100 people have been kidnapped in northeast DR Congo during an attack blamed on Uganda’s rebel Lord’s Resistance Army, the United Nations said Wednesday. Lieutenant-Colonel Martin Amouzou Codjo, spokesman for the UN’s MONUSCO peace mission in DR Congo, said the suspected LRA members …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | At the sound of Muhammad Ali’s name Martino Kavuala, now a 63-year-old estate agent in Kinshasa, seems to light up as he recalls the “Rumble in the Jungle” back in 1974 which “held us spellbound”. Ali, who died on Friday aged 74, held the …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | At least two people were reported killed Thursday as rallies across DR Congo against President Joseph Kabila turned violent, with police firing tear gas in the capital Kinshasa and the eastern city of Goma. Large numbers of riot police were deployed across the country …

Kampala, Uganda | AFP & INDEPENDENT REPORTER | The Government of Uganda has protested the killing of four policemen along Lake Albert and an official protest note has been sent to the Democratic Republic of Congo. Uganda is also demanding compensation. “If there was a problem with our patrol police …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | DR Congo’s President Joseph Kabila can remain in office when his mandate expires at the end of 2016, even without being re-elected, the Constitutional Court said Wednesday. The ruling was handed down in response to a request from the ruling party amid rising tension …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Opposition politician Moise Katumbi will appear before a prosecutor in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday over government allegations he recruited foreign mercenaries. Katumbi — who plans to run against President Joseph Kabila in elections due this year — has been summoned by …