A clash between Congolese armed forces and members of a religious sect protesting Western organisations operating in Congo killed at least 26 people, a local official said.
The violence broke out early Wednesday in the eastern city of Goma where Wazalendo followers gathered for a protest, which had been banned by the city mayor, against a UN peacekeeping mission and other international organizations they accuse of exercising colonial-like power.
Protesters accused the army of firing indiscriminately with live rounds on protesters, while the Congolese army said in a statement that the protesters had stoned a policeman to death. The army also said 160 people were arrested. Placide Nzilamba, a vice president of civil society in the region of North Kivu where the conflict unfolded, said Thursday that a preliminary investigation indicated that 26 civilians were killed and at least 50 injured in the clash. Associated Press reporters saw the nearby Ndosho hospital in Goma overwhelmed with injured patients.
Goma’s Mayor Faustin Napenda Kapend had banned the protest on Aug. 23 soon after it was announced.