Un Peacekeepers Discover Mass Graves in Eastern Congo

The United Nations reported on Thursday that mass graves containing 49 bodies had been found in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The killings were attributed to an ethnic militia group.

In the Ituri provincial village of Nyamamba, 42 bodies—including 12 women and 6 children—were discovered buried.

The UN peacekeeping operation, MONUSCO, announced on Twitter that seven men’s bodies had been discovered in the village of Mbogi, roughly 30 kilometers to the east of Bunia, the provincial seat.

It added that troops had started a patrol in the region over the weekend after learning of the attacks, saying, “MONUSCO firmly condemns these cruel and despicable executions ascribed to CODEC.”

One of the several militias present in eastern Congo is CODECO.

According to Reuters, its ranks are primarily made up of members of the farming Lendu group, who frequently assault Hema herders in the province of Ituri.

CODECO does not have a spokesperson and was unable to be reached for comment. CODECO is divided into factions and operates in isolated locations.

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The UN mission reported that since the beginning of December, at least 195 civilians have been killed and 84 kidnapped in attacks attributed to CODECO and a rival militia known as Zaire, bringing the total number of displaced people in the Ituri region to almost 1.5 million.

A request for comment was not immediately answered by the official spokeswoman for Congo. -Reuters