Africa: Congo

Gombe, the business heart of Kinshasa, is the seat of DR Congo's government institutions, banks and foreign embassies. By JUNIOR KANNAH (AFP/File)

DR Congo confines, disinfects business district to fight virus

15 hours ago

Kinshasa on Monday closed off its upmarket business district for two weeks and began large-scale disinfection in a bid t ...

Two staff members of the Congolese Ministry of Health pack their equipment after performing a COVID-19 test at a private residence in Goma, northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on March 31, 2020. By ALEXIS HUGUET (AFP/File)

DR Congo 'prepared' to take part in vaccine testin...

Apr 4, 2020

The Democratic Republic of Congo is prepared to take part in testing of any future vaccine against the coronavirus, the ...

In DR Congo, funerals are exceptionally important -- a time of grief but also renewal. By John WESSELS (AFP)

DR Congo in mourning after funeral parties banned

Apr 1, 2020

A ban on funeral commemorations in Democratic Republic of Congo aims at preventing the spread of coronavirus -- but it h ...

The muezzin at the Katindo mosque in Goma, northeastern DR Congo, called for prayers in a deserted house of worship on Sunday after the authorities appealed for social distancing. By ALEXIS HUGUET (AFP)

DR Congo city locks down as more African nations r...

Mar 23, 2020

Democratic Republic of Congo's second largest city began a 48-hour lockdown and three more African countries led by Nige ...

Father Guy-Robert Mandro, shown with a visitor to his home as he recovers from his maiming. By SAMIR TOUNSI (AFP)

Militia 'sect' wreaks havoc in remote DR Congo reg...

Mar 18, 2020

With three fingers chopped off his left hand, Father Guy-Robert Mandro bears physical witness to a resurgence of violenc ...

Kahimbi was close to former president Joseph Kabila. By WALTER ASTRADA (AFP/File)

Sacked DR Congo general died by 'hanging': preside...

Mar 7, 2020

DR Congo's sacked former deputy chief of military intelligence, who was under European Union sanctions, died by hanging, ...

Last year, more than 18 million children under the age of 5 were vaccinated across the DR Congo. By JUNIOR KANNAH (AFP)

Away from coronavirus, DR Congo battles deadly mea...

Mar 6, 2020

As the world grapples with the spread of novel coronavirus, in remote western DR Congo, officials are fighting a deadly ...

The Congo Basin Forest, the world's second largest rainforest after the Amazon, covers two-thirds of DR Congo's surface. By ALEXIS HUGUET (AFP/File)

Greenpeace accuses DR Congo of signing vast new lo...

Mar 6, 2020

Greenpeace on Thursday accused the Democratic Republic of Congo's government of signing huge new logging contracts in th ...

The Democratic Republic Of The Congo’s Last Ebola ...

Mar 3, 2020

Brazzaville/Goma, 3 March 2020 ndash; The last Ebola patient in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was d ...

The slow pace of reform in DR Congo has sparked traffic jams on arterial roads. By Junior KANNAH (AFP/File)

Stalled DR Congo infrastructure plan sparks graft ...

Mar 2, 2020

A programme to repair DR Congo's shambolic infrastructure launched with much fanfare exactly a year ago has barely taken ...

President of the Democratic Republic of Congo Felix Tshisekedi, seen here in November 2019, has called for a warmer relationship with Israel. By Sumy Sadurni (AFP/File)

DR Congo leader to appoint Israel envoy, vows clos...

Mar 2, 2020

The leader of the Democratic Republic of Congo said Sunday he would appoint an ambassador to Israel after a two-decade g ...

Delphin Kahimbi wielded enormous power during Kabila's rule. By WALTER ASTRADA (AFP/File)

DR Congo orders probe into disgraced top general's...

Feb 29, 2020

DR Congo's president has ordered a probe into the death of a disgraced general, who was under European Union sanctions f ...

Communal violence has long plagued eastern DR Congo, leaving tens of thousands dead. By JOHN WESSELS (AFP)

DRCongo signs 'peace' deal with armed group in eas...

Feb 29, 2020

The Congolese government has signed a deal with an armed group to restore peace and security in the eastern Democratic R ...

Police said 30 people were arrested and 54 fined for participating in a banned protest in Paris against a Congolese singer they accuse of having ties to the Kinshasa regime. By Julien Claus (AFP)

Anti-Congo regime protesters set fires in Paris

Feb 28, 2020

Paris police arrested dozens of protesters on Friday who burnt scooters and garbage bins outside a concert venue hosting ...

Billions of desert locusts, some in swarms the size of Moscow city, have already chewed their way through Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti, Eritrea, Tanzania, Sudan, South Sudan and Uganda. By TONY KARUMBA (AFP)

DR Congo latest victim of locust swarms: experts

Feb 27, 2020

After they ravaged parts of East Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo has became the latest country on the continent ...

Burnt down houses are seen in the village of Manzalaho near Beni, Democratic Republic of Congo on February 18, 2020, following an attack allegedly perpetrated by the rebel group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). By Alexis Huguet (AFP/File)

Five dead hostages found after eastern DR Congo ma...

Feb 19, 2020

Five hostages taken by an armed group that killed 10 people in eastern DR Congo this week have been found dead, a local ...

Rwandan musician Kizito Mihigo, pictured speaking to the media after being arrested in April 2014 on charges of threatening state security. By STEPHANIE AGLIETTI (AFP/File)

Friction between DR Congo and Rwanda after disside...

Feb 19, 2020

Rwanda has lashed out at the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the death of a dissident singer in Rwandan police custo ...