At 2am on March 15, 2021, jihadists from the Islamic State – Central Africa Province attacked the town of Bulongo, Beni Territory, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, killing 15 people.
Background The Allied Democratic Forces, a Ugandan Islamist rebel group that is active in northeastern DRC, declared bay'ah to the Islamic State in 2019 and officially became the Islamic State's Central Africa Province. Since the merging to ISCAP, the group targeted civilians more often in deadly massacres throughout North Kivu. The town of Bulongo itself had been attacked several times by the ADF/ISCAP, killing over 70 people and kidnapping 40. In 2021, the group began slaughtering everyone above the age of 15.
Massacre The massacre began at around 2am in the Mutilipi district of the city, and MONUSCO stated it had sent reinforcements to the area to stop the massacre. ISCAP attacked Bulongo with machetes and pickaxes, slaughtering everyone they saw. Many of the slain civilians were beheaded and their bodies were gutted. The following day, locals and survivors protested against Congolese forces and MONUSCO for not preventing the attack, and one protester was killed and one was injured by bullets.
The Kivu Security Tracker attributed the attack to ISCAP, and the Islamic State claimed it later. At least fifteen people were killed.
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