Bunia – The Democratic Republic of Congo army said on Tuesday it killed more than 40 militia fighters in the restive northeast of the country.
The fighting took place in the Kobu mining region of Ituri province, said Jules Ngongo, spokesman for the military in the region.
“More than 40 Codeco militiamen were neutralised” in the offensive, including their local leader, Lieutenant Ngongo said.
Codeco – Cooperative for the Development of the Congo – is one of dozens of armed groups in the region and claims to defend the Lendu ethnic group.
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Since May, the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri have been under a state of siege, with the army and police replacing civilian authorities as they fight armed groups.
On Saturday rebels shot or hacked to death at least 30 people in a massacre in Ituri, according to local and UN sources.
Members of civil society blamed the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a group linked to the so-called Islamic State, for that attack.
The ADF, which the United States has deemed a terrorist group, is considered the deadliest of the scores of armed militias that roam the mineral-rich eastern DRC.
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Picture: Getty Images
Source: AFP
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