75 militias arrested in DR Congo over rapes, killings

By -

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo have arrested a provincial deputy and 74 others accused of belonging to a militia that carried out killings and mass rapes in the country's restive east, the justice minister said Thursday.
South Kivu province lawmaker Frederic Batumike was the leader of the violent group, which goes by the name of "Djeshi ya Yesu" (Jesus' Army), Alexis Thambwe Mwamba said at a press conference in Kinshasa, according to AFP.
He said Batumike was suspected of having ordered the murder last March of Congolese human rights activist Evariste Kasali and the 2012 killing of German national and local land owner Walter Mueller.
The minister also accused the militia of raping around 30 girls, saying that Batumike had hired "a fetishist who told the militiamen to rape very young girls to be assured of acquiring supernatural protection".
Batumike and the other suspects were taken into custody this week in Bukavu, the capital of the country's troubled South Kivu province, the minister added.
There have long been claims of recurrent sexual violence in the resource-rich but volatile region, home to dozens of armed groups.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

UBTH @50: Obaseki hails institution’s role in strengthening Edo healthcare

By -
Image
(Nigeria) Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, has commended the staff and management of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, UBTH, for their unwavering commitment, dedication, and hard work in providing high-quality healthcare services to the people of Edo State and Nigeria in the past fifty years. Obaseki, at a dinner organized in honour of the Committee of Chief Medical Directors of Nigeria, at the Government House, Benin City, reassured the government’s continuous partnership and collaboration with the federal government-owned health institution to strengthen the health system and ensure quality health delivery to Edo people. The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Philip Shaibu, reeled out the gains of the government’s reforms in the health sector, commending the medical centre for bolstering the government’s efforts at transforming Edo State into a health hub. He said, "We came into a wilderness where you have to cut a part for yourself and fix it. We held
Read more

Tinubu departs Nigeria for Europe on working visit

By -
Image
*President-elect,  Bola Tinubu,  departs Nigeria for Europe on working visit (Nigeria) President-elect Bola Tinubu on Wednesday, departed Nigeria for Europe on a working visit. Office of the President-elect, in a statement on Wednesday, by Tunde Rahman, said: “He will use the opportunity of the trip to finetune the transition plans and programmes, and his policy options with some of his key aides without unnecessary pressures and distractions. “During the visit, the President-elect will engage with investors and other key allies with the goal of marketing investment opportunities in the country and his administration’s readiness to enable a business-friendly climate through policies and regulations. “Already, meetings with multi-sectoral actors in Europe’s business community including manufacturing, agriculture, tech and energy have been lined up. “Asiwaju Tinubu hopes to convince them of Nigeria’s readiness to do business under his leadership through mutually-beneficial partnerships p
Read more