Beni of the Democratic Republic of the Congo-A CODECO militia attack at a mining camp in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo killed two Chinese and kidnapped several others, an Army spokesman said Thursday.
Local chiefs and civil society leaders also confirmed the deaths of the two, saying that eight other Chinese were missing after the attack on Wednesday. They also blamed CODECO, one of a series of armed groups operating in the area.
The attack occurred in Jug, Ituri, where the Chinese people have an informal gold mining business.
“We confirm that elements of CODECO attacked one of our positions in the Djugu region. They also attacked the base of our Chinese brothers and unfortunately killed two. And kidnapped others, “said Lieutenant Jules Gongo, a spokesman for Ituri’s army.
I couldn’t ask the CODECO militia for comment. I couldn’t even contact the Chinese embassy in Kinshasa.
According to the United Nations, repeated attacks by CODECO have killed hundreds of civilians and displaced thousands of people in the Djugu region since 2017.
About 20 people were killed in an attack on refugees in Djugu territory on Sunday night when the government also accused CODECO.
CODECO fighters are mainly collected from Lendu’s agricultural community, which has long been in conflict with Hema nomads.
Wednesday’s attack was the second in a week of Chinese mining work in the peaceful eastern part of Congo. Officials said on Sunday that a gunman killed a police officer and kidnapped five Chinese near a mine in South-Kivu.
By Erikas Mwisi Kambale
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