A civil society organization reported on Thursday that at least twelve people had been killed and sixteen more had been abducted by rebels at a mining site in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
A gold mine near the Djugu district of Ituri province was attacked on Wednesday by rebels from the CODECO armed group, according to Vital Tungulo, director of Mabendi, a local rights organization.
Primarily composed of Lendu ethnic farming community members, CODECO is an unofficial association of militia groups. 14 people were killed when its fighters attacked a village in the province of Ituri in September.
The attack disappointed military commander Yves Kadjena, who expressed his disappointment on Thursday. This was especially true given that CODECO and other militias had signed a peace treaty at the end of January, committing to end hostilities and free the hostages.
The army was acting to put an end to the violence, according to Commander Kadjena.
