French soldiers today exchanged fire with gunmen in the volatile north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) town of Bunia and were targeted by a hand grenade that failed to explode, a spokesman says. Colonel Gerard Dubois says the EU-led Interim Emergency Multinational Force sent a patrol to the south-western suburb of Tchemtchem after residents reported that armed men were looting a nearby dispensary. "The militiamen attacked the patrol, which responded," he said.
| "Hot damn, Mbosa! They're shootin' back! Quick! Throw the grenade!" |
"The militiamen then fled, throwing a grenade which did not explode."
"Pull the pin next time, Mbosa."
"Sorry, boss." |
The spokesman says no casualties have been sustained on either side during the incident. It is the third time the force had engaged armed men in Bunia, where it has been mandated by the United Nations to secure the town and protect its population from inter-ethnic clashes that have claimed hundreds of lives in recent weeks. On June 16, two armed men, reportedly drunk, were shot dead after they pointed their weapons at patrolling French special forces.
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