Up to seven people have been killed by gunmen during a rally ahead of elections at the end of this month in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the rally near Rutshuru in the North Kivu province of the country reviving fears that the polls could be disrupted by violence. The central African country will hold its first free multi-party election in four decades on July 30, but rebels and militias continue to terrorise the civilian population despite the presence of the world's biggest United Nations peacekeeping force. Jean-Luc Mutokambale, the independent parliamentary candidate who staged the rally, fled to Uganda in fear for his life after the shooting. Other local candidates have asked for UN protection. Officials said on Tuesday that several people were also wounded in the worst violence so far. Jacqueline Chenard, a UN spokeswoman in North Kivu, said a team had been sent to investigate the attack.