DRC Holds Funerals for Victims of Military Crackdown

Dozens of people who died during a military crackdown on protests by a religious sect in the city of Goma, the Democratic Republic of Congo, were buried Monday. Two high-ranking military officers were arrested this month for taking part in the crackdown that left 43 people dead and another 56 severely injured. One relative of a victim called for the government to apologize to their families. Interior Minister Peter Kazadi denounced the violence, but sought to deflect blame by mentioning neighboring Rwanda. On Aug. 23, Goma’s mayor banned a protest organized by a sect called the Natural Judaic and Messianic Faith Towards the Nations, known colloquially as Wazalendo. Its supporters planned to protest against the regional East African Community organization and the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the DRC. MONUSCO has faced increased pressure to withdraw from the DRC after over two decades in the conflict-burdened nation.