An ADF Attack Adds to Eastern Congo’s Already Complex Conflict
World Politics ReviewJan 20, 2023
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DR Congo: At Least 40 Killed In Alleged Rebel Twin Attacks
Last updated Mar 09, 2023
Image credit: Getty Images [via Al Jazeera]Facts
- Local authorities in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) stated on Thursday that over 40 people have been killed in twin attacks carried out overnight on Wednesday in the neighboring villages of Mukondi and Mausa in the Beni territory of the North Kivu province.[1]
- The provisional death toll from the raids — attributed to the allegedly Islamic State (IS)-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels — is 38 people in Mukondi and eight in Mausa, most of them reportedly killed with knives.[2]
- The ADF is known for waging deadly machete and hatchet attacks on villages in the North Kivu province, which has been under military administration since 2021 in a bid to quell rebel activity bedeviling the area.[3]
- Last week, the US Embassy in Kinshasa announced that the Rewards for Justice program was offering $5M for information leading to the location of ADF leader Musa Baluku, who has been designated by the State Dept. as a "Specifically Designated Global Terrorist."[4]
- A UN Security Council delegation is scheduled to start a three-day visit to the DRC on Thursday as the situation further deteriorates in North Kivu. This is also due to the powerful M23 rebel group, which re-emerged in 2021.[5]
- The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated on Wednesday that recent clashes in North Kivu have displaced over 20K people, with regional authorities reporting more than 800K residents affected in 2022.[6]
Spin
Narrative A
The DRC-based Ugandan rebel group ADF has consistently executed deadly attacks in North Kivu despite Kinshasa enforcing a state of siege in the area, revealing that the M23 is not the only threat to national and regional stability. And though cooperation between the DRC and Uganda has indeed achieved some tactical and operational goals against the ADF, the group's inner circle has not been broken yet.
Narrative B
While undeniable that the ADP has not been defeated yet, as it keeps creating chaos in the eastern DRC, joint efforts by Congolese and Ugandan forces have successfully expelled the ADF from the Ituri province, allowing civilians to return to their villages, and rescued those held in captivity by the terrorists. There is still a long way to go to eradicate ADF, but authorities are on the right path.
