source: AFP; UN HRC; MONUSCO; Radio Okapi
actor1: Batende Ethnic Militia (Democratic Republic of Congo)
actor2: Banunu Ethnic Militia (Democratic Republic of Congo)
location: Yumbi
notes: 16 December. A group of 3,000 armed Batende attacked Yumbi city - particularly the neighborhoods of Noyi, Bolu, Likolo, and Ntsentseke. Local police members participated along the Batende (the head of the police had disarmed Banunu officers prior to the attack). Armed Banunu members retliated in some areas with support from a member of the naval forces. Civilians were shot, stabbed, mutilated, and burned to death; over 900 properties were damaged including homes, schools and churches. A MONUSCO investigation confirmed 170 fatalities, primarily from the Banunu community (the number may be higher due to uncounted bodies dumped into the river). The attack came after a communal dispute over the burial of the Banunu's customary chief on land belonging to Batende on 14/12. Local CSOs indicate that the group's political allegiances of the Batende with the FCC and Banunu with the Lamuka Coalition exacerbated the dispute.