According to the United Nations, some 90 Hutu rebels have been killed in Eastern Congo in the past two weeks, as part of a joint operation between the Congolese Army and UN forces.
In addition to the killings, a UN forces spokesman said that some 68 people surrendered in the attack, and they recovered 47 weapons. Why 158 rebel fighters only had 47 weapons between them was not explained.
The offensive, dubbed Operation Peace Now by the Congolese govt, saw two bases destroyed in a pair of provinces along the border between Congo and Rwanda. The operation was a follow-up to Operation Kimia II last year.
Kimia II was roundly condemned internationally as a “humanitarian disaster,” displacing nearly a million people, and the UN-backed troops left 1,000 civilians dead. Both the rebels and the UN-backed Congo troops were implicated in the attacks on innocent civilians, leading to calls for a UN pullout.
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This is of course the forgotten war, forgotten because the stakes are so high, vast mineral wealth. Whoever hold the various mineral deposits have guaranteed global markets. Millions have died in this seemingly endless slaughter, but no one wants to talk too loudly about it, as that might draw attention to those who are profiting from the mayhem, and who their customers are.