Militants of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) radical group are suspected of killing 19 people in an attack in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's province of North Kivu, the head of the province's Buliki area said on Saturday.
"In the morning, we found many bodies of civilians killed by the militants. In addition to the five killed on Friday, another 14 bodies were found in the village of Kasanzi. As a result, the preliminary death toll has reached 19," Kalunga Meso said, as quoted by the 7sur7 news outlet.
The militants also reportedly set fire to the houses of civilians and looted property.
ADF insurgents are believed to be responsible for regular acts of violence in the DRS and neighbouring Uganda, where the group was initially formed in the 1990s to fight the government. The Ugandan authorities label the rebel group as a terrorist organization.
In 2017, the ADF pledged allegiance to the Islamic State terrorist group. (ANI/Sputnik)
( With inputs from ANI )
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor