MADRID, April 23 (EUROPEAN PRESS) –

At least two civilians have been beheaded in an attack carried out by members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which are linked to the Islamic State jihadist group, in North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Meleki Mulala, the person in charge of civil society in the Ruwenzori area, has detailed that the incident took place on Thursday in the village of Kabalwa, which is located in the vicinity of Mutwanga, according to the Congo news portal Actualité.

The ADF, a Ugandan group formed in the 1990s that is highly active in eastern DRC and accused of killing hundreds of civilians in this part of the country, suffered a split in 2019 after its leader swore allegiance to the jihadist group. Central Africa (ISCA), under its banner has been operating ever since.

On the other hand, the Army has killed seven suspected members of the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO) militia in clashes in Bakonde, which is located in Ituri province, also in eastern DRC, as confirmed by sources quoted by the news. portal 7sur7.

The clashes that occurred on Friday also resulted in the death of a soldier, in the framework of a series of Army operations to try to expel CODECO militia members from the cities they occupy in the territory of this African country.

CODECO’s militia is largely composed of members of the Lendu community, following an increase in attacks since June 2019 and inter-communal clashes between Lendu and Hema in Ituri, reminiscent of the conflict between the two communities between 1999 and 2007 over grazing rights and political representation.