The terror wrought by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) has reached a new level of horror in the Babila Babombi chiefdom, in the heart of Mambasa territory. More than forty civilians, cowardly massacred between the last week of July and 2 August, still lie on the ground, unburied. The persistent presence of the attackers is preventing any humanitarian intervention.

In the mining areas of Pakwa, Pondo, Longue Histoire and Munguiko, situated within the Bandimboyo village group, the victims’ bodies have been left out in the open. The information was confirmed this weekend by local traditional authorities, who are powerless in the face of the rebels’ firepower.

According to the chief of these communities, Mwami Kiba Mbida Josias, the distribution of the tragedy bears witness to the violence of the criminal attacks. Thirty bodies have been left in the Pakwa mining area, seven victims have been counted in Pondo, and ten bodies have been trapped inside a church in Munguiko.

Human dignity is currently being trampled underfoot by fear. Families and local leaders find themselves completely unable to organize funerals or recover the victims’ remains. The enemy is still lurking, turning the area into a death trap. “I am waiting for the army to escort us so that we can go and bury these bodies, as the enemy is still moving around the area,” warned Mwami Kiba Mbida Josias, issuing an urgent appeal to the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC).

Faced with the imminent threat of further clashes and in order to clear the area of human shields, the local authority has ordered the evacuation of the survivors: “I urge the population to leave the area to allow the army to do its job.”

This latest massacre in the mining areas of Mambasa illustrates the growing activity of the ADF, which is stifling the local economy and plunging Ituri into mourning, despite the military operations currently underway in the region.

Written by Azarias Mokonzi