Security forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have killed at least 46 fighters and returned calm to the capital, after armed men opened fire on multiple sites across Kinshasa, government officials say.
On Monday, around 100 people were killed on when security forces clashed with supporters of a self-proclaimed ‘prophet’ Paul Joseph Mukungubila who tried to seize control of the airport, a military barracks and state television, the government said.
DRC troops killed 46 fighters and detained another 20, while one government soldier was also killed, according to a government spokesman.
“We were subjected to well-orchestrated attacks in Kinshasa, Lubumbashi and Kindu,” Lambert Mende, a government spokesman, told a news agency on Monday, adding that the situation was under control.
Mende said the “aggression” on the eve of New Year festivities was aimed at terrorising Kinshasa citizens.
Speaking to an international news agency on Monday from an undisclosed location, Mukungubila, an evangelical Christian pastor who has been critical of the government, said his supporters were behind the attacks, but that they had been armed only with sticks.
He said they were angry after the military attacked his residence in the early hours of Monday morning.
“My disciples were angry. And they took what they could which was a bunch of sticks. My disciples were never armed. They went to show what we are capable of. I am a man of peace, and this was not a premeditated action,” Mukungubila said.
