Gunmen from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) killed at least 44 civilians in northeastern DR Congo this week, Africanews reported. Humanitarian and security sources gave the toll on Friday. The ADF is linked to the Islamic State group.
The raids hit villages in the Mambasa territory of Ituri province. Ebola was first detected there six months ago. Local official Gabriel Tonge said some bodies were already decomposing. He said some victims were hacked to death with machetes and others were shot.
A humanitarian source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the rebels were "still in the bush and have set up ambushes". The attacks took place about 100 kilometres from the site of an earlier massacre.
Just days before, the ADF killed 66 people in neighbouring North Kivu. Three health workers were among the dead in that attack, and several medical facilities were burnt. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus then warned that the region's chronic instability was "one of the greatest obstacles to the Ebola response". The two waves of violence have cost 110 lives in total, according to Africanews.
The Ebola epidemic was declared in May. It has become the worst in the country's history, killing more than 5,400 people. The virus has spread across large parts of the east and northeast. Militias, including the ADF, have attacked health workers fighting the outbreak.
The ADF was formed from former Ugandan rebels. It is notorious for extreme brutality towards civilians and has carried out repeated massacres in North Kivu and Ituri. The Ugandan and Congolese armies have both sent troops to fight the group, so far without significant success, Africanews reported. Armed groups have plagued eastern DR Congo for more than 30 years.