A suicide bomber attacked a restaurant on Saturday as customers gathered on Christmas Day, killing at least six other people in a town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where Islamic extremists are known to be active.
Heavy gunfire rang out soon after the bomb exploded, panicking crowds fled the city center.
Saturday’s attack marks the first time known that a suicide bomber has claimed victims in eastern DRC where an Islamic State-affiliated group earlier this year took responsibility for a suicide bombing near a another bar in Beni which had no other casualties.
Mayor Narcisse Muteba, who is also a police colonel, said at least two of the victims were children. The injured survivors were taken to the local hospital, he said.
At least 13 other people were injured and taken to a local hospital.
“Investigations are underway to find the perpetrators of this terrorist attack,” he told theAssociated Press.
He urged people to return home and stay there while authorities investigate what happened.
General Sylvain Ekenge, spokesman for the governor of North Kivu, said security guards prevented the suicide bomber from entering the crowded bar and the person instead detonated the explosives at the entrance.
“We call on people to be vigilant and to avoid crowded areas during the holiday season,” he said in a statement. In the city and the territory of Beni, it is difficult, in these times to know who is who ”.
Rachel Magali had been at the restaurant and bar for about three hours with her sister-in-law and several others when she heard a loud noise outside.
“Suddenly we saw black smoke surrounding the bar and people started crying,” she told theAssociated Press. “We rushed to the exit where I saw people lying down. There were green plastic chairs strewn all over the place and I also saw heads and arms that were no longer attached. It was really horrible. “
“Investigations are underway to find the perpetrators of this terrorist attack,” Mayor Muteba told theAssociated Press.
The city has long been the target of rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF, which has its origins in neighboring Uganda. But an Islamic State-affiliated group claimed responsibility for two explosions in Beni in June, heightening fears religious extremism had also taken hold there.
Last June, the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo experienced its first suicide bombing attack when a Ugandan blew himself up in front of a bar. The Islamic State Province of Central Africa group later said the suicide bomber was targeting Christians. Another explosion that day occurred in front of the Emmanuel-Butsili Catholic Church in Beni, injuring two people.
Residents of the city have repeatedly expressed their anger at the continued insecurity despite an army offensive and the presence of UN peacekeepers in Beni.