Several households were victims of looting and violence during an incursion by unidentified armed men on the night of Tuesday, April 29, in the village of Kishonja, Buabo group, in the Masisi territory (North Kivu).
According to local sources, the assailants systematically looted homes, while some residents were subjected to torture.
Two attacks in 24 hours
The same sources indicate that this recurring rural banditry is now forcing many families to live as internally displaced persons within their own villages, due to the lack of even basic security.
This attack in Kishonja occurred just 24 hours after another armed incursion on the evening of Monday, April 27, at the 8th CEPAC primary school, located in the main town of the Masisi territory.
Mass Displacement
According to multiple sources, nearly one hundred households from the Bireré and Camp Sayo neighborhoods had sought refuge there after fleeing armed attacks in their respective villages. Settled in this site as displaced persons, these families hoped to find relative protection.
However, surprised by armed men, these displaced people were once again robbed of all their belongings, including goats, chickens, turkeys, money, and clothing.
These attacks, often accompanied by small arms fire, maintain a climate of constant fear in the Masisi territory. Although the area is under the control of the AFC-M23, other armed groups known as Wazalendo also operate there.
Illegal Roadblocks
Sources from local civil society attribute these incursions to elements of these armed groups.
In several areas, notably Katoyi and Osso Banyungu, as well as in parts of the Bahunde and Bashali chiefdoms, including Ufamandu and Bashali Mokoto, fighters have reportedly erected illegal roadblocks. At these checkpoints, passersby are routinely extorted, while nighttime raids, looting, and acts of torture against civilians continue to escalate, rendering several villages virtually uninhabitable.
With Okapi
