UN helicopter shot down in Congo, 8 dead

General Sylvain Ekenge, deputy spokesman for the armed forces Congo “The helicopter carrying eight members of the UN peacekeeping force and observers was shot down in an area controlled by the M23,” said the statement.

Mr Ekenge told reporters: “The helicopter was shot down on a mission to assess the population movement caused by the M23 attacks in the area, before humanitarian assistance was carried out. presently”.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani military said in a statement that six Pakistani officers and soldiers were on the plane. Helicopter was shot down within the framework of a UN peacekeeping mission and all were killed.

“Pakistan has always played a pivotal role as a responsible member of the international community to help carry out global peace and security missions” in various peacekeeping missions, the statement said. added.

The Pakistan Aviation Unit has been deployed at the United Nations mission in Congo on a peacekeeping mission since 2011.

All eight people on board were killed. (Photo: Deutsche Welle)

Earlier on the same day, the United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo said it had lost contact with one of the country’s helicopters on a reconnaissance mission in eastern Congo, in the region. Chanzu.

Fighting between the Congolese army and the M23 rebels broke out in the northern province of Kivu on March 237 after the rebels attacked military positions in the Tchanzu and Runyonyi regions, in Rutsuru territory.

The Congolese military alleges that Rwandan soldiers are backing the M23 fighters. However, in a statement on March 29, Rwanda denied these allegations and called them “baseless”.

Fighting in the Congo has forced about 13,000 people to flee to neighboring Uganda.

Local sources said that fighting continued on March 28 as M23 rebels tried to capture the town of Bunagana on the border with Uganda.

In 2013, the M23 rebel group signed a peace agreement with the Congolese government in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. However, the M23 leaders accused the Congolese government of not honoring the agreement as clashes continued. continue to take place.

According to the United Nations, the past three months have seen an alarming resumption of M23 rebel activities in North Kivu province, leading to numerous skirmishes with Congolese military forces.

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