This archive report was first published on 8 August 2019.
Published on August 8, 2019, thousands of protesters in Beni city, eastern DR Congo, took to the streets to express their outrage over a spate of killings.
According to police and local leaders, the protesters blocked roads and burnt tires in the city, with some 5,000 people participating in the demonstration.
"Really, it's not right, there are killings every day," said Kizito Bin Hangi, a local civil society official.
The protest was sparked by a series of killings, including at least six deaths in the past 24 hours, with the latest attack occurring in Mbau commune, where an unknown group killed six people.
"The enemy arrived suddenly last night around 8:30pm... six people were killed while fleeing. I saw the bodies of five men and one woman. Four were killed by bullets and two by machete," Noella Katongerwaki, president of the civil society for Beni territory, told AFP.
The Beni region in North Kivu province is home to several armed groups and criminal gangs, including the notorious Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which has been accused of killing several hundred civilians in recent years.
