At least 55 civilians killed by militia fighters in northeastern Congo

Militia fighters killed at least 55 civilians in an attack on a cluster of villages and a camp for displaced people in northeastern Congo, local authorities said Tuesday.

Violence has surged across eastern Congo, where conflict has raged for decades. More than 120 armed groups are fighting in the region, most for land and control of mines with valuable minerals, while some are trying to protect their communities.

Armed men from the CODECO militia attacked the Djaiba group of villages, which is also home to a camp for the displaced, in the province of Ituri Monday night, Antoinnette Nzale, the leader of the camp, told The Associated Press. She said 55 civilians died but added that the death toll is likely higher, as bodies continue to be retrieved from the burned down houses.

The Cooperative for the Development of Congo, or CODECO, is a loose association of militia groups mainly from the ethnic Lendu farming community. The group’s attacks killed nearly 1,800 people and wounded more than 500 in the four years through 2022, according to the African Center for the Study and Research on Terrorism.

The United Nations has said some of the attacks could constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity.

“Almost the entire village was attacked," Nzale said, adding that the U.N. peacekeeping force known as MONUSCO and Congolese government troops intervened but were overwhelmed by the more numerous attackers.

Jean Richard Lenga, chief of Bahema Badjere district, where the villages are located, confirmed the attack, adding that at least 38 people were killed. He also said the death toll is likely higher as bodies continue to be retrieved.

Most of the victims were displaced people who were killed with machetes and firearms, Mumbere David, a resident of Djaiba, told the AP over the phone.

In September, CODECO fighters killed at least 20 civilians in Djugu, the same territory that was attacked on Monday night.

The conflict in eastern Congo escalated last month after Rwanda-backed rebels seized Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, which is about 350 kilometers (215 miles) south of Ituri province.