Death Toll Rises to 41 in Suspected Rebel Attack in Congo

The death toll in an attack by suspected Islamist rebels on villages in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has risen to 41, a spokesman for the Congolese army in Beni and a civil society leader said.

Following the attack members of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) led by Lieutenant-colonel Mak Hazukay, army spokesman in North Kivu, went on a foot patrol. Their mission was to urge villagers to remain in their homes and not flee despite the recent surge in violence.

Hazukay said the attack had been carried out by members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which originates from neighboring Uganda and is alleged to be behind another assault that killed at least 16 people earlier this week.

The ADF, which is now based in eastern Congo, has pledged allegiance to Islamic State and mounted frequent attacks, further destabilizing a region where many militant groups are active.

Armed men used guns and machetes to attack residents of villages in Beni territory, in North Kivu province, overnight, local official Fabien Kakule said.

Vusindi Nick Junior, a local civil society leader, said that a local health center had been burned and nine people injured in addition to the 41 killed.