Seven UN peacekeepers shot at Congo protest

KINSHASA (Reuters) – Seven

United Nations peacekeepers in Congo were wounded when gunmen opened fire at a protest in the East of

the country on Monday, drawing condemnation from the U.N. Security Council.

There were no details on the condition of the

peacekeepers, who the U.N. Security Council said were from Pakistan.

Several more peacekeepers

in the contingent were injured by stone throwers when a base in South Kivu province was surrounded by

crowd of 1,000 people, the United Nations said.

“The seven wounded peacekeepers have been taken

to Goma, North Kivu, for medical treatment,” U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s spokesman, Martin

Nesirky, said in a statement.

The U.N. Security Council strongly condemned the attack in a

statement later on Monday, saying that at least 11 peacekeepers were injured during the

incident.

The 15-member council “reiterated their serious concern about the deteriorating

security and humanitarian situation in the Kivus and the impact on the Congolese

population.”

“They encouraged the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to ensure

that the perpetrators of the attacks are brought to justice swiftly,” the statement said.

The

United Nations said the protest was against attacks by Rwandan Hutu rebel FDLR forces in the area, and

it suspected that local Mai Mai militia shot at the blue helmets from within the crowd. Reinforcements

have been sent to the area, which is calm but tense, the U.N. added.

Congo’s last war

officially ended nearly a decade ago but its East is still plagued by a plethora of local and foreign

armed groups.

The U.N. mission in Congo is one of the world’s largest, but its men are

stretched thinly across the vast nation and the force is frequently accused of not doing enough to

protect civilians from gunmen.