At least five dead and 50 injured are the toll of the riots that occurred during protests against the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Monusco) which took place in Goma, the capital of the eastern province of North Kivu. Kinshasa government spokesman Patrick Muyaya reported it on Twitter.
For 22 years, the Monusco has been deployed in the north-east of the country with the aim of putting a stop to the insecurity that dominates the provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu, where there are dozens of armed groups.
In recent years there have been numerous episodes of discontent with the blue helmets. And yesterday in Goma, the capital of North Kivu, hundreds of demonstrators protested against the ineffectiveness of Monusco and some of them stormed two buildings of the peacekeeping force, raiding furniture and equipment.
The population is exasperated because it is subjected to constant tensions, the killings of civilians by armed groups are on the agenda, and does not see any improvement in the situation. And he even asks that Monusco leave. Their presence has led to nothing.
Ten days ago, the president of the senate, Modeste Bahati, asked Monusco to raise the curtains.
Social media has been inundated with videos and photographs showing injuries, violence, deaths and, in the distance, gunshots can be heard. An image shared on Twitter shows the body of a person lying unconscious on the ground, with people around them who claim she was killed by a bullet fired by United Nations forces. Several videos received by InfoAfrica this morning show dozens of injured people rescued from the crowd and dragged away from the center of violence.
According to local media, the forces of Monusco fired live bullets also yesterday, in an attempt to dissuade the demonstrators and disperse them.
Al Jazeera reported shots fired from blue helmets at the address of the demonstrators. One of the demonstrators, according to a reconstruction, may have been killed by a UN soldier. Clashes also took place in Butembo, also in North Kivu.
The government of Kinshasa, in a statement, makes it known that it has asked the Congolese army and the police to restore calm in Goma: the police and the army fired warning shots to prevent the demonstrators from attacking what remained of the Monusco, on Monday the acts of looting were intense. The government has promised sanctions and prosecutions against thugs and looters.
Monusco currently has 14,000 blue helmets and constitutes a significant cost for the international community.
References:
https://www.africanews.com/2022/07/25/protesters-storm-un-base-in-eastern-dr-congo-city/
https://www.dailysabah.com/world/africa/3-un-peacekeepers-12-protesters-killed-in-dr-congo-police