DR Congo (DRC) is on the headlines again and for the worst reasons.
Rebels in eastern DRC have carried out one of the deadliest attacks against UN
forces in recent years. At least 14 blue helmets and five congolese soldiers
have been killed and 53 injured. The dead or injured blue helmets are for the
most part from Tanzania. Scores of armed groups operate in this African
country, especially in the largely lawless eastern Kivu and Kasai regions.
Monusco (United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the DR
Congo), established in 2010, is the largest peacekeeping operation in the world
and aims to control the actions of various armed groups in conflict. It has
16,500 blue helmets and more than 1,350 policemen. The attack has not yet been
claimed, but is believed to have been perpetrated by the Allied Democratic
Forces (ADF), the rebel islamic group formed in the neighbouring Uganda back in
the nineties which has been increasingly active over the past 6 months.
However, there are suspicions that other groups are involved.
This country has never found peace in its recent history for many
reasons: disputes over natural resources, territorial claims, ethnic and tribal
rivalries, etc. Now with the dismantling of the Daesh in Syria and Iraq, small
groups are forming and spreading everywhere, supporting terrorist groups already
well established in some regions, as is the case of the ADF. It seems that we
may have another explosive "ingredient" in the already tumultuous and
perilous Central African country - Islamic extremism.
Therefore, more than the firmness and assertive words from the UN
Secretary General, António Guterres condemning this attack that described it as
a "war crime", a strategy is urgently needed and thus a more
effective action in this region, and paying close attention to the type of
organization (its main traits) Daesh is developing in other regions.
Miguel Verde -
Senior Consultant, Professor of International Relations
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