Page 3 - Congo

Indian Embassy urges nationals in Congo to move to safer locations

The Embassy of India in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, on Sunday said it is closely monitoring the security situation in the central African country and asked all the Indian nationals in Bukavu to immediately depart to safer locations. The Embassy issued three advisories during the day and recommended that everyone prepare an emergency plan. There are about 1,000 Indian nationals in Congo. Rwanda-backed M23 rebels captured the eastern Congolese city of Goma and are looking at expanding their area of control. "There are reports of M23 being only around 20-25 kms away from Bukavu. Given the security situation, we once again advise all Indian nationals residing in Bukavu to immediately depart to safer locations by whatever means available while the airports, borders and commercial routes are still open. We strongly recommend against any travel to Bukavu," the advisory said. In the latest advisory, the Embassy recommended that everyone prepare an emergency plan and gave ...

773 dead in week-long clashes as Congo tries to repel Rwanda-backed rebels

At least 773 people were killed in eastern Congo's largest city of Goma and its vicinity this week amid fighting with Rwanda-backed rebels who captured the city in a major escalation of a decadelong conflict, Congolese authorities said Saturday. The rebels' advance into other areas was slowed by a weakened military that recovered some villages from them. Authorities confirmed 773 bodies and 2,880 injured persons in Goma's morgues and hospitals, Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya told a briefing in the capital, Kinshasa, adding that the death toll could be higher. These figures remain provisional because the rebels asked the population to clean the streets of Goma. There should be mass graves and the Rwandans took care to evacuate theirs, said Muyaya. Hundreds of Goma residents were returning to the city on Saturday after the rebels promised to restore basic services including water and power supply. They cleaned up the neighborhoods littered with debris from weapons and .

As M23 rebels advance in Congo, new leader signals shift in its identity

After Rwanda-backed M23 rebels took control of the biggest city in eastern Congo this week, the man who emerged from the shadows to assert his leadership was not the group's long-time military leader. Sultani Makenga, an ethnic Tutsi rebel leader sanctioned by both the US and the UN, was nowhere to be seen in Goma's Serena Hotel as the bearded Corneille Nangaa, in military fatigues, was ushered into the hall. Nangaa, who is not a Tutsi and who analysts say brings a more diverse, Congolese face to the group, told reporters of his plan to fight all the way to Kinshasa, the national capital a thousand miles away. The spectacle was significant because it captures the evolution of M23 from an ethnic Tutsi-dominated outfit more than a decade ago to one that's now actively seeking to be seen as a Congolese nationalist group. That's the case despite the military support it gets from neighbouring Rwanda, according to observers and analysts in Africa's Great Lakes region. From election chief

Indians in Congo's conflict-ridden Goma city moved to safer places: MEA

India on Friday called for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Congo and said it is closely following the developments in the central African country. Rwanda-backed M23 rebels captured the eastern Congolese city of Goma and are looking at expanding their area of control. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said about 1000 Indian nationals were living in Goma and most of them had moved to safer places following the start of the conflict. "We are closely following the developments in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We remain concerned at the deteriorating security situation," he said. "We call for a peaceful resolution of the conflict," he said. Jaiswal said the Indian embassy in Kinshasa, the capital of Congo, has issued advisories for Indians living in the Goma area. "There are about 1000 Indian nationals who were living in Goma, but most of them have moved to safer places since the outbreak of the conflict," he said. "The embassy remains in regul

Chaos erupts as M23 rebels seize Goma: What's happening in DR Congo

M23 plans to govern the city of Goma - a key gateway to rich mining areas that produce valuable resources like gold, tin, and coltan - giving the armed group access to trade routes and economic power

It's declaration of war: Congo after Rwanda-backed rebels claim key city

Rwanda-backed rebels claimed they captured eastern Congo's largest city, Goma, early Monday, as the United Nations described a mass panic among its 2 million people and Congo's government said the rebel advance was a declaration of war." The M23 rebels announced the city's capture in a statement minutes before a 48-hour deadline expired that had been imposed by the group for the Congolese army to surrender their weapons. Early Monday morning, gunfire was heard throughout the city, according to two aid workers sheltering there who were not authorized to speak to the media. In a statement, the rebels urged residents of Goma to remain calm and for members of the Congolese military to assemble at the central stadium. The M23 rebels' offensive in the heart of the mineral-rich region threatens to dramatically worsen one of Africa's longest wars and further displace civilians. According to a United Nations report, over a third of the population of North Kivu province where Goma is located

Islamic State-linked rebels kill at least 10 people in eastern Congo

At least 10 people were killed in eastern Congo by extremist rebels linked to the Islamic State group, a local official said on Wednesday. The rebels with the Allied Democratic Forces, an IS affiliate in the region, attacked the village of Makoko in the Lubero territory of the North Kivu province on Wednesday, a provincial member of parliament, David Sikuli, told The Associated Press. I call on the Congolese government to allow joint operations by Congo and Uganda's army to be expanded in all areas where the ADF are located, Sikuli said. There were no Congolese soldiers in the village, only local fighters known as Wazalendo, who often fight alongside Congolese security forces, he added. Eastern Congo has struggled with armed violence for decades as more than 120 groups fight for power, land and valuable mineral resources, while others try to defend their communities. Some armed groups have been accused of mass killings. The violence has caused nearly 7 million people to flee their

38 dead, 100+ missing in Congo after ferry capsizes in Busira river

Thirty-eight people are confirmed dead, and over 100 remain missing in Congro after an overloaded ferry -- full of people returning home for Christmas -- capsized in the river Burisa late on Friday night, according to local officials and eyewitnesses. Twenty people are confirmed to have been rescued so far. The boat was travelling in the northeast of the Congo as part of a convoy of other vessels, and the passengers were primarily merchants returning home for Christmas, said Joseph Joseph Kangolingoli, the mayor of Ingende, the last town before the site of the accident. The capsizing occurred less than four days after another boat in the northeast of the country capsized, killing 25. According to Ndolo Kaddy, a resident of Ingende, the ferry contained "more than 400 people because it made two ports, Ingende and Loolo, on the way to Boende, so there is reason to believe that there were more deaths". Congolese officials have often warned against overloading and vowed to punish those

Congo files complaints against Apple in Europe over conflict minerals

Some Congo mines are run by armed groups involved in massacres of civilians, mass rapes and other crimes. Apple has said none of smelters or refiners of 3T minerals had financed those groups

'Disease X' outbreak spreads more as UN sends health team to Congo

Outbreak is centered in a remote rural area of Kwango province, where poor road conditions and heavy rains mean it takes nearly 48 hours to reach from Kinshasa

Cause of 'Disease X' investigated after it killed 79 people in Congo

Almost 200 of the 376 afflicted with a flu-like illness are younger than five, said Jean Kaseya, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention

Joe Biden begins long-awaited Africa trip to secure win against China

At stake are vast supplies of minerals like copper and cobalt, which are found in Congo and are a key component of batteries and other electronics, and China is the top player in Congo as of now

Gold mining town in Congo becomes mpox hot spot as new strain spreads

Slumped on the ground over a mound of dirt, Divine Wisoba pulled weeds from her daughter's grave. The 1-month-old died from mpox in eastern Congo in August, but Wisoba, 21, was too traumatised to attend the funeral. In her first visit to the cemetery, she wept into her shirt for the child she lost and worried about the rest of her family. When she was born, it was as if God had answered our prayers we wanted a girl, Wisoba said of little Maombi Katengey. "But our biggest joy was transformed into devastation. Her daughter is one of more than 6,000 people officials suspect have contracted the disease in South Kivu province, the epicentre of the world's latest mpox outbreak, in what the World Health Organisation has labelled a global health emergency. A new strain of the virus is spreading, largely through skin-to-skin contact, including but not limited to sex. A lack of funds, vaccines and information is making it difficult to stem the spread, according to alarmed disease experts. Mp

Mpox scare: Centre asks states to review preparedness, screen all suspects

India on Sunday reported a suspected case of Mpox

Fast-spreading mpox variant detected in Congo's densely populated capital

Co-circulation of clades Ia and Ib was reported for the first time in the central African city of more than 17 million people

Congo receives its first mpox vaccine shipment to combat outbreak

With a population of around 100 million, the Congo is currently at the centre of the outbreak

Attempted jailbreak at Congo prison kills 129 people leading to chaos

An attempted jailbreak in Congo's main prison left 129 people dead, including some who were shot by guards and soldiers and others who died in a stampede at the overcrowded facility, authorities said Tuesday. One prominent activist put the death toll at more than 200. A provisional assessment showed that 24 inmates were fatally shot by warning" shots fired by guards as they tried to escape from the Makala Central Prison in the capital Kinshasa early on Monday, Congolese Interior Minister Jacquemin Shabani said on the social media platform X. There are also 59 injured people taken into care by the government, as well as some cases of women raped, he said, adding that order had been restored at the prison, part of which was burned in the attempted jailbreak. Shabani did not elaborate on the incidents of rape in the prison, which has both male and female inmates, as well as military personnel facing charges. It wasn't immediately clear if all 129 fatalities were inmates and officials

At least 129 people died during an attempted jailbreak, says Congo

According to the government, 24 prisoners lost their lives by gunfire while the others died by jostling or suffocation

Congo's humanitarian crisis makes mpox spiral again into health emergency

Sarah Bagheni had a headache, fever, and itchy and unusual skin lesions for days, but she had no inkling that her symptoms might have been caused by mpox and that she might be another case in a growing global health emergency. She also has no idea where to go to get medical help. She and her husband live in the Bulengo displacement camp in eastern Congo, a region that is effectively ground zero for a series of mpox outbreaks in Africa. This year's alarming rise in cases, including a new form of the virus identified by scientists in eastern Congo, led the World Health Organization to declare it a global health emergency on Wednesday. It said the new variant could spread beyond the five African countries where it had already been detected a timely warning that came a day before Sweden reported its first case of the new strain. In the vast central African nation of Congo, which has had more than 96% of the world's roughly 17,000 recorded cases of mpox this year and some 500 deaths f

Mpox emergency response hit by scarce financing amid WHO calls for support

WHO has released $1.45 mn from its contingency fund for emergencies, while African Union has approved $10.4 mn from its existing Covid funds for Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention