17 dead after Congo anti-government march turns violent

Kinshasa - At least 17 people, including three
policemen, were killed when Congolese police and
anti-government protesters clashed in the capital
Kinshasa on Monday during a march against President
Joseph Kabila and what the protesters see as his bid to
extend his mandate.

Congolese opposition supporters chant slogans during a
march to press President Joseph Kabila to step down in
the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital Kinshasa.
Photo: Reuters/Kenny Katombe. Credit: REUTERS
The protest, attended by thousands, came at a time of
growing local and international pressure on Kabila to
step down when his term of office legally ends in
December.
The opposition accuses him of plotting to extend his
tenure by delaying elections that were supposed to be
held in November until at least next year. His
supporters deny this.
“Officially, we have 17 dead in Kinshasa: three police
and 14 civilians,” said Interior Ministry spokesman
Claude Pero Luwara.
Earlier, a Reuters witness saw a crowd burning the
body of a police officer in the Kinshasa suburb of
Limete in an apparent act of retaliation for police
gunfire.