Communal attacks kill more than 40 people in western DR Congo

By Yassin Kombi

(Reuters) - More than 40 people have been killed over the last week in a flare-up of violence between two feuding communities in western Democratic Republic of Congo, the Congolese army and local authorities said.

The bloodshed is among the most significant for the Teke and Yaka groups since the brokering of an April peace agreement that was meant to ease tensions over a land tax dispute that has killed hundreds and displaced thousands since 2022.

On Friday, the army was ambushed in Kwango province by a Yaka militia called Mobondo, leading to the deaths of 21 militiamen and two soldiers, an army spokesperson, Antony Mualushayi, said.

The fighting triggered a wave of communal violence in the broader area that included the burning of 12 civilians to death in a village, mostly women and children, Mualushayi said in a separate statement on Tuesday.

"They locked the victims up in a house and then set it on fire," Guy Mosomo, a member of parliament for this constituency, told Reuters.

A further eight Mobondo fighters were killed in the clashes, according to the army.

Fighting has persisted because some traditional chiefs contest the April deal, saying it was not inclusive.

Representatives of the two communities in the capital Kinshasa have also sought to stir up tensions, Mualushayi told Reuters on Tuesday.

"They want more talks, and since the government is dragging its feet, the others prefer to start launching attacks to force the Congolese government to accept their demands," he said.

(Writing by Sonia Rolley; Editing by Alessandra Prentice and Barbara Lewis)