Gunfire crackles in Congo's Goma, embassies attacked in capital

Police in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) fired tear gas at protesters in the capital, Kinshasa, on Tuesday, after embassies were attacked over the conflict in the country's east.

The demonstrators targeted embassies of countries they accuse of complicity in Rwanda's support of M23 rebels, who have seized the eastern provincial capital, Goma.

A European diplomat told Reuters that the embassies of France, the United States, Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya were targeted by the protesters.

French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on a post on X that the French embassy in Kinshasa was attacked and briefly caught fire, although the blaze had been brought under control.

"All of this is because of Rwanda. What Rwanda is doing is in complicity with France, Belgium, the United States and others. The people of Congo are tired. How many times should we die?" a protester told Reuters.

Protests erupted across the city with demonstrators burning tires and clashing with the police who fired tear gas to disperse them, a Reuters reporter in Kinshasa said.

M23 rebels marched into the eastern city of Goma on Monday in a major escalation of the three-decade conflict.

Protesters attacked the Kenyan embassy and soldiers who were there did not stop them, a witness said, while the Reuters reporter said he saw the Ugandan embassy being looted.

Speaking on national TV, Congo's Communications Minister Patrick Muyaya urged protesters to stop their attacks. He later said the situation had been brought under control.

"We have every right... to express our anger, but let's do it peacefully. Let's not attack the consular infrastructures of countries accredited in Congo," he said.

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