Congo army kills 28
Sep 03, 2007
KINSHASA <br><br>Congo’s army said yesterday it had launched strikes against fighters loyal to dissident Gen. Laurent Nkunda in the eastern border region with Rwanda, killing at least 28 insurgents.
KINSHASA
Congo’s army said yesterday it had launched strikes against fighters loyal to dissident Gen. Laurent Nkunda in the eastern border region with Rwanda, killing at least 28 insurgents.
Government forces launched the assault on Nkunda’s soldiers late on Sunday near Karuba, some 30 kilometres west of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.
Exchanges of machine gun and heavy weapons fire lasted several hours with clashes continuing throughout Monday morning, military officials said.
“Up to now these are preventative strikes designed to allow us to control the terrain,†the army’s commander of operations, Colonel Delphin Kahimbi, told Reuters, adding that the bodies of 28 Nkunda loyalists were recovered following the attacks.
The clashes came as the foreign ministers of Rwanda and Congo met in Kinshasa to discuss the unrest.
Rwanda’s foreign minister, Charles Murigande, said on Sunday better relations with Kinshasa could help tackle escalating violence in eastern Congo, which Nkunda has called a “state of warâ€.
Over the last week, thousands of civilians in North Kivu province have fled fighting between Congolese government troops and Nkunda’s forces.
Murigande said he hoped an improvement in Rwandan-Congolese relations could provide solutions to the security problems plaguing the east.
In North Kivu, this included the presence of the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), made up of former Rwandan soldiers and Interahamwe, responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
“For a few years now, we’ve been trying to work together to see how they (the FDLR) can be disarmed, demobilised and chased out the Democratic Republic of Congo,†Murigande said.
Nkunda accuses Joseph Kabila’s government of abetting his enemies in the FDLR. He told the BBC on Saturday his forces had captured FDLR fighters who were attacking them along with government troops.
Rwanda had long accused Congo of arming and harbouring the FDLR, but Kinshasa has made efforts in recent years to expel the militia, prompting the resumption of diplomatic ties last year.
Congo’s army said yesterday it had launched strikes against fighters loyal to dissident Gen. Laurent Nkunda in the eastern border region with Rwanda, killing at least 28 insurgents.
Government forces launched the assault on Nkunda’s soldiers late on Sunday near Karuba, some 30 kilometres west of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.
Exchanges of machine gun and heavy weapons fire lasted several hours with clashes continuing throughout Monday morning, military officials said.
“Up to now these are preventative strikes designed to allow us to control the terrain,†the army’s commander of operations, Colonel Delphin Kahimbi, told Reuters, adding that the bodies of 28 Nkunda loyalists were recovered following the attacks.
The clashes came as the foreign ministers of Rwanda and Congo met in Kinshasa to discuss the unrest.
Rwanda’s foreign minister, Charles Murigande, said on Sunday better relations with Kinshasa could help tackle escalating violence in eastern Congo, which Nkunda has called a “state of warâ€.
Over the last week, thousands of civilians in North Kivu province have fled fighting between Congolese government troops and Nkunda’s forces.
Murigande said he hoped an improvement in Rwandan-Congolese relations could provide solutions to the security problems plaguing the east.
In North Kivu, this included the presence of the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), made up of former Rwandan soldiers and Interahamwe, responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
“For a few years now, we’ve been trying to work together to see how they (the FDLR) can be disarmed, demobilised and chased out the Democratic Republic of Congo,†Murigande said.
Nkunda accuses Joseph Kabila’s government of abetting his enemies in the FDLR. He told the BBC on Saturday his forces had captured FDLR fighters who were attacking them along with government troops.
Rwanda had long accused Congo of arming and harbouring the FDLR, but Kinshasa has made efforts in recent years to expel the militia, prompting the resumption of diplomatic ties last year.