14 people killed near Congo’s capital as violence over land intensifies

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — An attack on a village in western Congo left 14 people dead, a military official said Monday, as violence over land ownership between rival communities has intensified.

The attack took place during the early hours of Sunday in the village of Nkana, around 75 kilometers (47 miles) northeast of Kinshasa, the capital, Capt. Antony Mualushayi, the spokesperson for the military in the area, said in a statement.

The attackers, armed with rifles and machetes, exchanged gunfire with the few soldiers deployed in the village, Mualushayi said.

“While retreating, the insurgents massacred 13 civilians, including three children under the age of 5, and set fire to several homes,” the statement read, adding that a soldier also died.

Nkana is in the Kwamouth territory, where conflict has raged for three years between the Teke and Yaka communities.

The military said the attackers were with the Mobondo militia, a group presenting itself as defenders of the Yaka people.

The fight over land and customary claims erupted in June 2022, pitting the so-called “native” against “non-native” communities, according to the advocacy group Human Rights Watch.

Tensions flared between the Teke, historical inhabitants of the region, and farmers from various other ethnic groups including the Yaka, who settled near the Congo River more recently. The conflict has killed more than 5,000 people, and displaced 280,000 since 2022, according to the International Peace Information Service (IPIS), a research institute that monitors conflicts.

Mobondo militiamen have carried out killings in five provinces around Kinshasa, including its outskirts, according to the U.N.