AWFUL

34 Civilians Killed in Ethnic Fighting in DR Congo

Worst fighting of the year as an entire village is destroyed.

At least 34 civilians were killed Sunday in the Democratic Republic of Congo as ethnic tensions sparked the worst fighting all year. Authorities say a Nande ethnic militia launched an attack on a displaced-persons camp in a village run by Congolese Hutu, who the Nande accuse of aiding a separate rebel group. The attack was so severe and prolonged that the military was forced to intervene. “The militia was searching for members of the Hutu community and wreaked carnage before burning down the village entirely,” a local rights group told Agence France-Presse, adding that “attackers were there for more than an hour.” A local official said the Nande milita, dubbed the Mai-Mai Mazembe, first tried to neutralize members of the Congo military nearby. While one group fought with the military, he said, “another group was executing the population with bladed weapons or bullets.” The UN said peacekeeping forces were deployed to the area immediately and one of the attackers was killed. Fifteen people were wounded and evacuated.