At least 50 people were killed in weekend attacks in Congo’s conflict-battered east, authorities said Saturday.
The government traded blame with Rwanda-backed rebels over who was responsible for the violence that quickly escalated the conflict in the region, with Congolese armed forces denying any role in the attacks.
Meanwhile, a branch of the Wazalendo militia, which fights alongside the Congolese armed forces, claimed responsibility for the violence in the city of Goma.
The renewed violence that residents reported in and around the region’s largest city of Goma which the M23 rebels control was the biggest threat yet to ongoing peace efforts by both the Gulf Arab state of Qatar and African nations in the conflict that has raised fears of regional warfare.
Goma resident Amboma Safari recounted how his family of four spent the night under their bed as they heard gunfire and bomb blasts through Friday night.
“We saw corpses of soldiers, but we don’t know which group they are from,” Safari said.
