Dozens killed in ethnic violence in eastern Congo
KINSHASA -- More than 50 people have been killed in clashes between ethnic groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, three local aid workers said on Sunday, the largest death toll in fighting between the two groups for months.
On Friday, a group of Twa pygmies attacked the Luba, a Bantu ethnic group, near Kalemi, in Tanganyika province, the aid workers said.
The pygmies, who live in Central Africa's Great Lakes region, have fought the Luba for decades over what activists say are inequalities between Bantu villagers and the Twa hunter gatherers, are exclued from access to land and basic services.
"According to information gathered, there were about 50 deaths in the attack on the group," Ilunga Musafiri, president of the local NGO Inter-church Council said.
A local activist said most of the casualties were Lubas.
