MORE than 70 bodies were reportedly discovered in a Protestant church in Lubero, North Kivu province, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), last week.
Women, children, and elderly people were among the victims of the reported massacre, some of whom had been tied up, others beheaded.
A local source, reported to fear reprisals if identified, told the Roman Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need that fighters from the Islamist group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) had, earlier last week, seized about 100 people, who were said by the source to be Christians.
While the ADF is reported be targeting Christians, Aid to the Church in Need’s international press and media director, Maria Lozano, advised caution in speaking of Christian persecution. Most of the violence occurring in the DRC had no religious connection, she told the independent RC news agency Crux.
One reason could be that the hostages were made to travel with the rebels, either as reinforcements or as forced war labour. ”It is likely that these victims were unable to resist or endure the forced march,” she said.
“When there is loot, they need people to carry it. If you get tired on the way, you’re done. I believe that is what happened to these 70 people. The church was the best place to get rid of them.”
Open Doors, which advocates on behalf of persecuted Christians, reported that 20 of the 70 people were believed to have been taken from their homes in Mayba, the remaining 50 from outdoors, after the ADF had surrounded the village. Churches, schools, and health centres had already been closed, out of fear, local sources said.
Vatican News described the ADF as being “notorious for its violent tactics”. The massacre came, it reported, at a critical moment for eastern DRC, given the worsening of the humanitarian situation in North Kivu and South Kivu, where the M23 rebels continue their lightning offensive against the Congolese armed forces and their allies.
The medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported on Monday the critical injury of one of its staff members: shot, along with a child who had taken refuge with the organisation. “We strongly condemn this latest episode of violence, which has directly impacted a humanitarian facility that should be protected from gunfire,” MSF’s head of programmes, Stephan Goetghebuer, said.
“Despite our repeated appeals to the warring parties to protect humanitarian and health facilities, the safety of patients and medical and humanitarian staff is clearly not being taken into account. Humanitarian law is being flouted. This must stop.”
Masisi Hospital, where the charity is based, has itself come under fire.
The UN Security Council has called on the military in Rwanda to stop supporting the M23 rebel group and to withdraw all troops from Congolese territory immediately, “without preconditions”.
Anglican Primates have recently called for the immediate cessation of hostilities, describing the crisis as “a profound humanitarian tragedy, marked by violence, displacement, and suffering that affects millions of innocent lives” (News 21 February).
