Pierre from Wildlife Direct has posted bad news on the Gorilla Protection blog. Earlier today two people were killed and several wounded when Mai Mai attacked a WWF vehicle. Pierre writes that one of the women killed was the wife of “Kasereka Matembela, from the Advanced Force of Rangers based in Mutsora,” and an 18-year-old girl helping take care of his new baby. The baby survived. Here’s the AFP story:
AFP Jul 09, 2008
KINSHASA – Two people were killed and three injured when a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) vehicle was attacked in Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), local radio reported.
The WWF vehicle was travelling with 11 people in the Nord-Kivu sector of the vast territory – famed for sheltering more than half the world’s 700 remaining wild mountain gorillas – when it was ambushed by armed men, the United Nations-sponsored radio Okapi said.
An 18-year-old girl and her mother, the wife of a park warden, were shot dead, while two conservationists and the wife of another park warden were injured.
Members of the Congolese conservation institute ICCN were also travelling on board with WWF agents.
The attackers made off with GPS devices and other personal belongings.
Okapi radio quoted local officials who attributed the attack to Mai-Mai resistance fighters.
Militia in this region have frequently carried out attacks, violating a January ceasefire signed by all Congolese armed groups.
The Virunga park spreads across the DR Congo-Rwanda border.
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Filed under: conservation, Virunga National Park Rangers, wildlife conservation Tagged: | Virunga National Park Rangers
