5 killed as anti-UN protesters spread in east DR Congo

GOMA - At least five people have been killed and dozens injured during anti-UN protests in eastern DR Congo, a government spokesman said Tuesday as the unrest spread. On Monday, hundreds of people blocked roads and chanted hostile slogans before storming the UN peacekeeping mission’s headquarters and a supply base in Goma, the main city in North Kivu province. Protesters smashed windows and looted valuables, while helicopters airlifted UN staff from the premises and security forces fired teargas in a bid to push them back.  In a post on Twitter, government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said at least five people (were) dead, about 50 wounded in the unrest. The security forces had fired “warning shots” at protesters to stop attacks on UN personnel, he said.  The unrest continued on Tuesday, with the fatal shooting of a man near the supplies base, an AFP correspondent saw. The security forces were pushing back crowds outside the depot as protesters waved placards bearing slogans such as “bye bye MONUSCO”.

 

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