At least 60 people killed in DRC after ISIL-linked attack on funeral

"The ADF attack caused around 60 deaths, but the final toll will be given later this evening because the territory has just deployed services to the area to count the number of beheaded people, Col Alain Kiwewa, local administrator of the Lubero territory in Ntoyo, North Kivu, where the attack took place, told The Associated Press news agency on Tuesday."

"The mineral-rich Kivu region has been a flashpoint for months as the DRC and allied groups have been battling the Rwanda-backed M23 group, and has dozens of armed groups operating there. ADF has taken advantage of the volatile security situation to expand its operations. Gross rights violations, possibly including war crimes and crimes against humanity, may have been committed by the Rwanda-backed M23 militia and the Congolese military and its affiliates in eastern DRC, UN investigators said last week."

"ADF has carried out a series of deadly attacks this year. At the end of July, it attacked a Catholic church, killing more than 40 people and kidnapping between 12 and 14. In another attack in August, the rebel group killed 52 people, carrying out kidnappings, looting, the burning of houses, vehicles, and motorcycles, as well as the destruction of property, according to the United Nations peacekeeping force stationed there."

At least 60 people were killed while attending a funeral in Ntoyo, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, in an ISIL-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) attack. Local administrators reported the majority of victims were killed with machetes and others were shot; authorities deployed teams to count beheaded victims. The mineral-rich Kivu region has been a prolonged flashpoint with dozens of armed groups and clashes involving the Rwanda-backed M23, enabling ADF to expand operations. ADF carried out deadly attacks earlier this year, including a July church assault and an August massacre involving killings, kidnappings, looting, and arson. UN investigators reported possible gross rights violations by multiple parties.

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