Two mass graves containing a total of at least 172 bodies have been found in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s eastern city of Uvira, following the withdrawal of the AFC/M23 rebel group, a senior government official said.
The rebels briefly captured Uvira, a transit hub on Lake Tanganyika, near the Burundian border, in December. They began withdrawing a week later under U.S. pressure and the Congolese army re-entered the city last month.
AFC/M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka said he had been unaware of any mass graves during the group’s time in Uvira and accused the government of spreading propaganda to damage its reputation.
Press was not able to independently verify the circumstances of the deaths.
Jean-Jacques Purusi, the Kinshasa-appointed governor of South Kivu province, where Uvira is located, told local reporters the graves had been found in the Kilomoni and Kavimvira neighbourhoods. One contained 31 bodies, the other 141, he added in comments made on Tuesday that were recorded and broadcast in the country on Thursday.
