Page 3 - Congo

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

16 killed, 20 abducted in Congo in attacks blamed on IS-linked rebels

At least 16 villagers were killed and 20 others were abducted in northeastern Congo during attacks by militants with ties to the Islamic State group, a local civil society group said Friday. The assailants with the Allied Democratic Forces staged a series of attacks on locals, some while working on their farmlands, between Wednesday and Friday in Ituri province's Mambasa territory, said John Vulverio, coordinator of the New Civil Society of Congo. The (death) toll remains provisional, as the fate of 20 others kidnapped remains unknown, he said. Among those kidnapped in the attacks were the mother and sister of Gilbert Sivamwenda, a local government official, local media quoted the legislator as saying. Dozens of villages across Congo are besieged by armed groups made up of either local rebels fighting for power and valuable mineral resources or militants with extremist ideologies. The Allied Democratic Forces have carried out growing attacks in the region and sometimes across the .

Mpox thriving near gold mines, refugee camps risks rapid spread in Congo

A strain of the virus - which causes lesions that can result in disfigurement, blindness, and even death - has erupted around the gold-mining town of Kamituga

Mpox now a global health emergency; 'easily transmitting': Causes, symptoms

Monkeypox (or Mpox) is part of the same virus family as smallpox but typically causes milder symptoms, such as fever, chills, and body aches