Irumu: about fifteen people manage to escape from the hands of ADF fighters

It was in the territory of Irumu, in the province of Ituri in the east of the DRC that the concerned persons were able to escape from posts of the armed group ADF (Allied Democratic Forces). They took advantage of pressure from the Congolese and Ugandan armies in joint operations in this part of Congo. INFO SOS Médias Burundi

The information was delivered on Sunday, December 18, by Lieutenant Colonel Mak Hazukay Mongba, spokesman for the joint operations of the Congolese and Ugandan armies.

According to him, “these civilians escaped after the destruction of an ADF camp near Boga in the territory of Irumu”.

According to the same source, all these civilians, now ex-hostages, are taken care of by the coalition forces before handing over them to their respective families.

Colonel Mak Hazukay reassures on the determination of the Congolese and Ugandan armies to “restore the authority of the State in this part of the DRC”.

He nevertheless specifies that bodies of several civilians killed during the past week in the forest of Otomabere, in the towns of Epanza, Kazaroho, Ntume and Mangwalu, in the territory of Irumu (Ituri) have not been still buried.

This information is confirmed by Christophe Munyanderu, coordinator of the NGO-Convention for the respect of human rights, Irumu branch. He specifies that this situation is explained by the inaccessibility of the areas still controlled by assailants.

“It is difficult for affected families to recover the bodies of their loved ones. This Sunday, December 18, 2022, for example, some volunteers wanted to go and recover corpses of civilians killed in Kazaroho, who arrived in the center of Epanza, the latter faced the ADF who were preparing food”, he explained.

And he added, “It is urgent for military authorities to do something. Civilians killed are also Congolese, the government will not be able to sacrifice the populations up to this level. Authorities must track down the enemy that walks around without any worries”.

In recent weeks, the coalition has announced that it has killed a dozen ADF combatants.