EFL:
United Nations peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo have killed more than 50 militiamen in a gun battle in the north-east, the UN says. The fierce fighting came during a major offensive against an ethnic militia, accused of killing nine Bangladeshi UN soldiers in Ituri province last week. A UN spokeswoman accused the militia of killing and raping civilians from rival groups and said they must be stopped. The UN force in DR Congo is one of the world's largest, at more than 13,000. "While on operation we were fired upon, so we immediately responded," said Col Dominique Demange, a spokesman for UN forces in DR Congo. He said the Pakistani UN troops had used helicopter gunships and armoured vehicles in the operation against the ethnic Lendu Nationalist and Integrationist Front (FNI).
Tuesday's clash took place near where the Bangladeshi troops were ambushed last week, outside Loga, 30 km (19 miles) north of Bunia, Ituri's provincial capital. AFP news agency reports the militia were based on a plateau overlooking the town of Kafe, where more than 8,000 people have fled recent violence. |