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DR Congo clashes kill at least 21

Violent clashes between rebels and government troops in the restive eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have left at least 21 people dead, a military official said Thursday. At least 17 militia fighters and four soldiers were killed in the fighting which broke out on Wednesday in the town of Beni, some 250 kilometres (155 miles) north of Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province, Colonel Richard Bisamaza said. Six members of the Mai Mai militia were captured, Bisamaza said. A separate source told AFP that the toll was 28 dead, including four soldiers.

At least 31 killed as army, Mai Mai rebels clash in east Congo

KINSHASA (Reuters) - At least 31 people were killed in violent clashes after Mai Mai rebels attacked army positions in Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern town of Beni, a military spokesman said on Wednesday. Gunmen launched the attack early on Wednesday at an army recruitment center near the North Kivu provincial town before being repelled after more than two hours of fighting, Colonel Olivier Hamuli told Reuters.

DR Congo province in push to save child soldiers

Desperate to save children from being used as soldiers in the Democratic Republic of Congo, residents of the notorious "Triangle of Death" have taken matters into their own hands, launching the first wide-scale campaign to end the practice in the remote and volatile region. The United Nations has several ongoing efforts to stop the enlistment of children in the troubled country but this is the first grassroots campaign in the southeastern Katanga province.

First intervention brigade troops arrive in DR Congo

The first troops belonging to an intervention brigade aimed at taking on armed groups in strife-torn eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have arrived for their mission, a United Nations official said Monday. About a hundred soldiers arrived in the provincial capital of Goma at the weekend, Alex Essome of the UN force in DR Congo said. They are part of a 1,280 man force from Tanzania that is set to be deployed in the area "in the coming days".

Two arrested after peacekeeper killed in DR Congo

Two people suspected of involvement in an ambush in which a Pakistani peacekeeper was killed in strife-torn eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, were arrested on Wednesday, local government officials said. "Two people suspected of the attack against a United Nations convoy have just been arrested in Walungu," said Augustin Kazadi, administrator of the eastern town. The information was confirmed by the governor of the South Kivu province, Marcellin Cishambo, who said that traditional chiefs from the region where the attack took place were assisting police.

Tanzania brushes off Congo rebel threats ahead of new UN mission

By Fumbuka Ng'wanakilala DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) - Rebels behind a year-long insurgency in Democratic Republic of Congo have warned Tanzania they will target its soldiers if they join a U.N. mission to the region aimed at neutralizing armed groups, a Tanzanian cabinet minister said on Saturday. Foreign Minister Bernard Membe dismissed threats of "mass killings" and said the 1,000 soldiers, part of a new 3,000-strong intervention force, would respond to any aggression from the M23 rebel group.

Analysis: Congo rebels prepare to face U.N. force with mandate to attack

By Jonny Hogg RUMANGABO, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - In forested hills in eastern Congo, rebels are honing their ambush skills to prepare to face a new United Nations force which has a mandate to go on the offensive. "Destroy the enemy. Cause fear and stop his patrols," a rebel officer wrote on a blackboard as he instructed uniformed M23 fighters at a camp seized from the government in Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern borderlands.

DR Congo intervention brigade must be 'limited', UN envoy

A new UN intervention brigade to be deployed in conflict-stricken eastern Democratic Republic of Congo must carry out only "limited" strike operations, the new UN peace envoy for the region said Monday. Mary Robinson, UN special envoy for the Great Lakes Region, expressed concern to the UN Security Council about fallout from the brigade's operations on humanitarian operations in a region rife with rival rebel groups.

DR Congo intervention brigade must be 'limited', UN envoy

A new UN intervention brigade to be deployed in conflict-stricken eastern Democratic Republic of Congo must carry out only limited strike operations, the new UN peace envoy for the region said Monday. Mary Robinson, UN special envoy for the Great Lakes Region, expressed concern to the UN Security Council about fallout from the brigade's operations on humanitarian and human rights operations in the region rife with rival rebel groups.

Tanzania warns Congo's M23 rebels to stop threats

Tanzania on Saturday said Democratic Republic of Congo's M23 rebels must end threats over the country's planned sending of troops as part of a UN force to tackle the insurgents. "This is intimidation, they must stop it," Tanzanian foreign minister Bernard Membe told parliament. "If they provoke us, we will retaliate." Last month the M23 rebels, who operate in eastern DR Congo, warned they would retaliate if attacked by a new United Nations peacekeeping force, in which Tanzania are due to take a key role.
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