Joint Uganda, DR Congo operation freed 31 hostages, militaries say

KIGALI, Rwanda

At least 31 hostages were freed in a joint offensive of Congolese and Ugandan militaries against Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the militaries said on Saturday.

Thirty-four ADF rebels were captured besides Congolese hostages freed, according to a joint statement by the militaries.

A preliminary assessment of the air and artillery strikes on Nov. 30 indicated that four bivouacs belonging to the rebels were also destroyed, the statement further said.

The combat operations are conducted with human rights, international humanitarian law and the rules of engagement respected, it added.

On Nov. 30, the Congolese and Ugandan military launched airstrikes and artillery fires against the ADF rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Both troops are currently engaged in road construction and rehabilitation work to facilitate and further secure the movement of military personnel and the displacement of the civilian population, particularly on the Mbau-Kamango and Nobili-Kamango-Semuliki-Beni axes.

Accused of killing civilians for over a decade in the villages of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo where it is based, the ADF is also blamed for bomb attacks in neighboring Uganda.

It has been responsible for 6,000 deaths of civilians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 2013, according to the Catholic Church in the country.