Mob in DR Congo lynches soldier who shot civilians

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) - Angry residents of South Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo lynched a government soldier who was accused of killing several civilians, the army said Tuesday.

Lukusa Kabamba from the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s marine unit reportedly shot at passengers of a motorized boat in the province Monday, killing eight people and wounding nine others.

“Kabamba was ‘arrested’ (by local residents) a few hours after the shooting incident and lynched by an angry mob in the absence of law enforcement agencies,” Lieutenant Marc Elongo, the spokesman for the army in the area, told reporters.

“He died as a result of the torture inflicted on him by the population. No suspect has been arrested in connection with the lynching. And this soldier’s conduct should not taint the image of the army,” he said, adding nine people were injured and not seven as reported earlier.

The shooting incident occurred around 1 p.m. (1100GMT) on a motorized boat which was set to head to the city of Baraka from the port of Kazimihiya on Lake Tanganyika.

The soldier, who was apparently drunk, opened fire on civilian passengers after an altercation.

Monday’s incident happened a day after another drunken soldier killed eight people, including three soldiers, before being killed by his colleagues in the Bambu mine center, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of Bunia, the capital of Ituri province.