A Mayi-Mayi militia group reportedly attacked troops of the Front pour la liberation du Congo (FLC) on Sunday at their headquarters at Rwenda airport near Butembo in northeastern DRC, as well as at the local radio station, a regional analyst informed IRIN on Tuesday. Fighting continued around the two localities intermittently from 04:00 to 18:00 local time. Twenty Mayi-Mayi assailants, described by eyewitnesses as poorly-armed, were killed in the attack before withdrawing to their base camp on the outskirts of the town. Butembo was reported to be “relatively calm” on Monday, although some store owners refused to open for business, fearing renewed fighting. The analyst told IRIN that “it is not clear what prompted the Mayi-Mayi to launch the attack, nor which political players stand to benefit from the situation”. No civilian casualties or destruction of civilian property were reported.
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