REBEL GROUP ADF’S ATTACK ON DRC CATHOLIC CHURCH KILLS AT LEAST 21 PEOPLE

Mon 28 July 2025:

At least 21 people were killed on Sunday in an attack on church premises in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by a rebel group, according to a civil society leader.

The attack was carried out by members of the Allied Democratic Force (ADF) around 1 am inside the premises of a Catholic church in eastern DR Congo’s Komanda. Several houses and shops were also burnt.

“More than 21 people were shot dead inside and outside and we have recorded at least three charred bodies and several houses burned. But the search is continuing,” Dieudonne Duranthabo, a civil society coordinator in Komnada, told The Associated Press.

A spokesperson for the Congolese army in Ituri province, where Komanda is located, confirmed 10 dead.

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The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) is an Islamist rebel group operating in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and western Uganda since the 1990s.

Originally formed to oppose Uganda’s government, the ADF relocated to North Kivu, DRC, after being pushed out by Ugandan forces. Led by figures like Jamil Mukulu and later Musa Baluku, it pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in 2019, becoming ISIS-DRC.

Jamil Mukulu was arrested in Tanzania. Tanzanian court cleared his extradition to face trail in Uganda for allegedly ordering a spate of deadly attacks against civilians since the 1990s.

The group is notorious for brutal attacks on civilians, Congolese forces (FARDC), and UN peacekeepers (MONUSCO), killing thousands since 2013.

It operates in mineral-rich areas, funding itself through illicit trade and kidnapping. Despite military offensives, the ADF persists due to its recruitment networks and regional instability, contributing to a humanitarian crisis with mass displacements.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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