Kigali, Rwanda | AFP | Congolese opposition leader Moise Katumbi, in exile for two years, said from Rwanda on Friday that he was not afraid of President Joseph Kabila. “Now that am in Rwanda, they will come up with some more fake charges because they don’t like Rwanda,” he said …
Read More »Dozens drown fleeing violence in northwest DR Congo
Mbandaka, DR Congo | AFP | Forty civilians drowned when their boats capsized on a storm-swollen river as they fled fighting in northwest Democratic Republic of Congo, a senior local official said Friday. “As of Wednesday night, we recovered the bodies of 40 people” after their boats capsized, Jean Bakatoye, …
Read More »UN discovers five likely ‘mass graves’ in DR Congo
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | A UN report said Thursday what appears to be five mass graves have been discovered in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo where recent intercommunal violence has killed more than 260 people. The UN’s joint office for human rights has identified five “probable mass graves” …
Read More »UN gives cautious welcome after DR Congo authorises rally
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The United Nations on Wednesday gave a cautious welcome after the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) allowed some anti-government protests to go ahead in the runup to crucial presidential elections. The demonstrations on Tuesday were seen as a key political barometer in one of …
Read More »DR Congo main opposition set to hold key rally
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | DR Congo’s opposition was on Tuesday set to hold an authorised mass rally for the first time in nearly two years to mark the 28th anniversary of multi-party politics in the country, as tensions grow over veteran President Joseph Kabila’s refusal to quit despite the …
Read More »Hundreds displaced by DRC violence return home
Bunia, DR Congo | AFP | A first group of around 600 people who fled deadly violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo in early February returned to their homes in the northeast on Tuesday, authorities said. They returned voluntarily, said Laurent Chelo, secretary general of the social affairs ministry. …
Read More »DR Congo sacks more than 250 ‘fake’ or corrupt judges
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday sacked more than 250 magistrates who did not have a law degree or were accused of corruption. President Joseph Kabila has “sanctioned more than 200 individuals who do not fulfil the conditions to function as magistrates,” Justice …
Read More »Aid conference for DR Congo expected to draw $530 mn in pledges: UN
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Donors gathered in Geneva Friday were expected to cough up pledges of $530 million (430 million euros) towards addressing a towering humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the UN said. The amount was less than a quarter of the some $2.2 billion the …
Read More »Six park rangers killed in DR Congo’s Virunga wildlife sanctuary
Goma, DR Congo | AFP | Six rangers were killed on Monday in an ambush in the Virunga National Park, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s famed haven for gorillas and other endangered species, the park said. “We have sadly lost six rangers,” park spokesman Joel Malembe told AFP, adding that the …
Read More »Catholic priest shot dead in eastern DR Congo
Goma, DR Congo | AFP | A Catholic priest was found shot dead hours after he said mass in Democratic Republic of Congo’s restive North Kivu province, a member of the church told AFP. “Father Etienne Sengiyumva was killed Sunday by the Mai Mai Nyatura (militia) in Kyahemba where he had …
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