The United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) has reported that the bodies of a total of 51 civilians have been found in several mass graves in Ituri province, in the northeast of the country.
In the first grave, in the village of Nyamamba, 42 victims, including twelve women and six minors, were reportedly discovered. In a second grave, in Mbogi village, seven more men were reportedly buried.
The UN deputy spokesman, Farhan Haq, explained Wednesday that the bodies were found in two different villages, after peacekeepers visited the area because of the attacks this weekend.
«Peacekeepers launched a patrol to the area immediately after receiving reports of attacks on civilians by the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO) militias over the weekend, that’s when they made the gruesome discoveries,» the spokesman described.
For the moment, he did not want to link the mass graves with the fighting that left more than 60 civilians dead during the second week of January, indicating that they will wait for the results of the investigations.
Haq said MONUSCO is supporting the Congolese judicial system to investigate the attacks and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice.
In addition, the spokesman stressed that «these incidents have occurred amid a significant deterioration of the security situation», as since last month the mission has reported the death of 195 civilians, as well as 68 wounded and 84 abducted during various incidents.
Three other dreaded armed groups are mainly active in the region alongside CODECO: the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), the Front for Patriotic Resistance of Ituri (FRPI) and the Patriotic and Integrationist Force of Congo (FPIC).
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
