1. Home
  2. Africa
  3. DRC

Rwandan militias clash with army troops

[DRC] North Kivu Governor Eugene Serufuli Ngayabaseka in his Goma office. (Place: Goma / Date: 14 July 2004). Olu Sarr/IRIN
North Kivu Governor Eugene Serufuli.
Provincial authorities in Nouth Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), said on Tuesday that there had been fighting between Congolese troops and Rwandan Hutu militias, known as Interahamwe, at a village 150 km north of the provincial capital, Goma. "Interahamwe had, as they often do it in this corner, attacked the national Congolese army [known as FARDC]," Eugene Serufuli, the provincial governor, told IRIN. "FARDC pushed them back and they dispersed in the bush not far from Lusamabo village." He said no assessment had been made of the fighting, which occurred on Saturday in Miliki village, therefore casualty figures were unavailable. The government army spokesperson was unavailable for comment. However, a military spokesman for the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC), Col Domenica Demange, said the mission had received contradictory information about the fighting. UN-supported Radio Okapi reported that earlier fighting between the Interahamwe and FARDC caused confusion, and led to more exchange of fire between two units of the Congolese army. The radio said soldiers of the army's 8th Brigade thought they had been attacked and exchanged fire with their colleagues who were pursuing Interahamwe militiamen.

This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

Share this article

Get the day’s top headlines in your inbox every morning

Starting at just $5 a month, you can become a member of The New Humanitarian and receive our premium newsletter, DAWNS Digest.

DAWNS Digest has been the trusted essential morning read for global aid and foreign policy professionals for more than 10 years.

Government, media, global governance organisations, NGOs, academics, and more subscribe to DAWNS to receive the day’s top global headlines of news and analysis in their inboxes every weekday morning.

It’s the perfect way to start your day.

Become a member of The New Humanitarian today and you’ll automatically be subscribed to DAWNS Digest – free of charge.

Become a member of The New Humanitarian

Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

Join