Secretary-General Condemns Killing of Peacekeepers in Democratic Republic Of Congo, Tells Armed Groups to Stop Hostilities, Disarm Immediately

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary‑General António Guterres:

The Secretary-General condemns the killing of six Malawian and one Tanzanian peacekeepers of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) in Beni territory, North Kivu.  The peacekeepers were killed during joint operations carried out by MONUSCO and the Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC) against the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).  Initial reports indicate that ten additional peacekeepers were wounded, and another one is missing.  Several FARDC soldiers and an unknown number of ADF fighters were also reportedly killed or wounded during the operations.

The Secretary-General expresses his deepest sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the families of the killed peacekeepers and the Governments and people of the Republic of Malawi and the United Republic of Tanzania.  He wishes a prompt recovery to the wounded and conveys his strong support to the Malawian and Tanzanian contingents, which continue to operate in an exceptionally difficult environment to protect local populations against the attacks of the ADF and other armed groups.

The Secretary-General calls on all armed groups to stop their destabilizing activities, which continue to add to the suffering of the population and complicate the response to the ongoing Ebola outbreak.  He calls on them to disarm immediately.

The Secretary-General encourages the Congolese authorities to continue taking the necessary measures to apprehend and bring to justice the perpetrators of attacks against civilians, national security forces and peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.