Following a coup which was thwarted by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) army, recently, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has criticised attacks on the homes of senior officials of the DRC.
SADC released a communique yesterday outlining that these attacks do not only disrupt DRC but hamper the national security of SADC countries as President of DRC Felix Tshisekedi was amongst the targets.
“The Southern African Development Community (SADC) condemns in its strongest terms the attempted coup d’etat that happened on May 19, 2024, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo including that of President Felix Thisekedi,” SADC condemned in the statement.
While condemning the attacks, SADC lauded the DRC army for swiftly dealing with the matter. “While condemning this act of violence, SADC wishes to extend its appreciation to the DRC army for having arrested the perpetrators and ceased any escalation that could have occurred from this unfortunate incident,” SADC stated.
SADC implored fellow regional countries to rally behind DRC and offer their support in whatever way possible so that the country combats the challenges it is engulfed in.
“SADC is guided by the protocol on politics, defence and security cooperation, which aims to promote peace and security in the region, protect the region’s people from instability due to the breakdown of law and order, develop a common foreign policy for the region and cooperate on matters related to security and defence. Based on this SADC urges member states to adhere to this protocol and encourage the international community to continue supporting DRC people,” pleaded SADC.
According to BBC News, DRC army spokesperson Brig Gen Sylavin Ekenge said that a total of 50 suspects were apprehended. Out of the 50, three are Americans and one is a naturalised British citizen. BBC News further reported that President Tshisekedi was attacked by armed men at the house of Vital Kamerhe together with the former chief of staff in the early hours of Sunday morning.
President Tshisekedi has yet to make a statement following the unpleasant events that took place, where his own life was at risk. DRC has been embroiled in army attacks since the beginning of 2024.
