The death toll stemming from an assault in a village located in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri province surged to 25 as reported by a local chief and civil society leader on Sunday. The incident was confirmed both by a government spokesperson and a U.N. document, acknowledging the attack that occurred on Saturday.
According to sources, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo (CODECO) faction, one among several militias active in the conflict-ridden eastern area, perpetrated the massacre in the village of Galayi, situated 70 km (45 miles) northwest of Bunia city.
Banzala Danny, a local chief, and Vital Tungulo, a civil society leader, informed media that the discovery of fifteen bodies on Sunday added to the ten bodies found the day prior.
An internal U.N. document, as well as Jules Ngongo, the spokesperson for the governor of Ituri province, corroborated the occurrence of the attack and confirmed the initial death toll of 10 civilians.
“We assure that all the killers will be punished by justice,” Ngongo said.
The human rights situation in Ituri has been on a downward spiral since the start of the year, with CODECO ramping up its attacks, as outlined in a report by the United Nations Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO) released in March.
According to a report from the U.N. peacekeeping mission issued in March, CODECO and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), another militia faction, bear the primary responsibility for civilian casualties in the eastern region of the DRC.
