Protests Against UN Mission in Congo Result in Fatalities

The protests began on Monday, as hundreds of people attacked and looted a UN warehouse in Goma, calling for the MONUSCO mission to leave the country. On Tuesday, protests broke out again and spread to Butembo, 200 km north of Goma.

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On Monday, hundreds of hostile protesters surrounded the peacekeepers' base in Goma, shouting slogans before attacking the facility. 

In the beginning, the protesters were peaceful but turned violent once some picked up tear gas grenades from the ground and threw them at the MONUSCO warehouse.

UN security personnel fired tear gas to disperse the crowd while helicopters removed UN staff from the base. According to reporters, the group later broke windows, vandalized the facility, and even burned down the entrance gate.

Butembo police chief Paul Ngoma said protesters attacked the MONUSCO base with stones and gunfire. For his part, Government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said "warning shots" had been fired by security forces at the mob to stop the attacks. 

Al Jazeera reports that the protest was organized by a faction linked to President Felix Tshisekedi's ruling Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) party. 

Protesters demanded the departure of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), accusing the peacekeepers of failing to protect civilians against militia violence.

Fighting has recently resurged in North Kivu province in eastern Congo. The government blames the March 23 militia (M23), one of the more than 100 armed groups active in the region.