DR Congo: a suicide bomber attack, the first, aggravates the general anguish in Béni

Published on : 06/30/2021 – 18:57

These attacks attributed to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a rebel group consisting mainly of Ugandan fighters, killed one Sunday evening in the Mabakanga neighborhood. According to the Congolese army quoted by AFP, it would be a suicide bomber of Ugandan origin killed in the explosion of his machine near a bar.

Earlier in the morning, another homemade bomb attack also targeted the Saint Emmanuel Catholic Church in the Butsili district, a first in the region. Two women were injured there. The attacks have not been claimed.

“This attack is a real tragedy”

Josué Musanzalire, head of the Butsili district was not there during the explosion but heard the strong explosion from his house located not far from the chapel. He moved very quickly to the scene to realize the damage.

The explosion took place around six in the morning. Some of the faithful were already present in the church because a mass was to be celebrated at that time. The two women who were hit by the bombardments were arranging the chapel. It was a great day for the parish. Several faithful were to receive the sacrament of confirmation.

Everything was damaged inside the church. The windows were smashed, the benches destroyed as well as the sound instruments. We thank God because the lives of the victims are not in danger. They were injured, one in the legs, the other in the mouth. They were admitted to hospital but will be released in the coming days.

#RDC??: Some photos of the interior of the Catholic parish of #Butsili in town of #Blessed , after the explosion early in the morning of this Sunday, June 27, 2021 of an explosive device inside this parish: Between one and two people injured according to witnesses.#NORDKIVU pic.twitter.com/E7AIsGbxQx

– Martial Papy Mukeba wa Mukeba (@MartialMukeba) June 27, 2021

This attack is a real tragedy for our neighborhood, which has not experienced attacks since 2014. We are really worried. It is for the first time that a church is trapped in Béni. And we wonder if markets and schools will not be the next targets of armed groups. We are very afraid because the danger is there. We are afraid to live the atrocities of 2014 [NDLR, date du début des exactions des ADF à Beni].

However, we have confidence in our army, which has already taken steps to secure the populations.

The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) are at the origin of the Ugandan rebels, predominantly Muslim, hostile to President Yoweri Museveni, who withdrew to the eastern part of what is now DR Congo in 1995. This armed group, among the most violent in the region, is accused of the massacre of several thousand civilians in the territory of Beni since October 2014.

To prevent further attacks, the authorities have therefore increased the number of checkpoints on access to the city of Beni and demand to verify identity documents. Residents have also been made aware of reporting any suspicious behavior or object to the Security Forces.

“You should never approach an object that you do not identify. (…) We often say that if you have not left something you should never take it because it is sometimes trapped “, explained Jacob Bedidjo, in charge of the operations of the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMASS) in the region of Beni-Butembo-Lubero, according to reports. comments reported by Radio Okapi, the radio of the United Nations Mission in Congo (Monusco).

The suicide bombing as a new modus operandi

These attacks come almost two months after the establishment on May 6 of the state of siege in the provinces of Ituri and North Kivu by Félix Tshisekedi, the Congolese head of state, to fight against the hundred or so armed groups that are rampant in the east of the country, rich in mineral resources. Concretely, civilian governors have been replaced by military governors and civil courts by military courts.

Asked by the Deutshe welle, Pierre Boisselet, coordinator of the Kivu Security Barometer believes that the attack on a church and the use of a suicide bomber are illustrative of a change in strategy by the ADF to mark their presence.

“They are trying by frightening the population to obtain a political victory. And what they seem to be aiming for is the end of military operations against them. We have only seen in the past when military operations were triggered against them, there was a sharp increase in the massacre of civilians. One can think that the announcement of the state of siege indeed reinforced this motivation to terrorize “he explained.

The researcher, based on a report by the UN group of experts on the DR Congo published in December 2020, also explains that the rebel group has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State “even if today we do not ‘ has not enough evidence that ISIS directly supports them. ” The adoption by the ADF of the suicide attack as a modus operandi would therefore be one of the consequences of this merger.

A state of siege still ineffective

According to a report from the Kivu Security Barometer, a project initiated by the Groupe d’études sur le Congo (GEC) and the NGO Human Right Watch, the state of siege has failed to improve security in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. “Since the announcement of the state of siege by President Félix Tshisekedi, the security of civilians has in fact generally deteriorated in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri. The KST recorded the death of there. at least 223 of them in May, against 198 in April “can be read in an article published on the site dedicated to the project.

“The massacres of Boga and Tchabi, in the territory of Irumu, which left 55 civilian victims on the night of May 30 to 31 (the deadliest day ever recorded by the KST) largely contributed. month on month, the toll has also worsened in the territory of Beni (74 civilians killed in May, against 47 in April) and that of Mambasa (35 civilians killed in May, against 3 in April) ” , add text.