One peacekeeper killed in Congo after U.N. chopper comes underneath fireplace

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) – One U.N. peacekeeper was killed in japanese Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday when a helicopter operated by the peacekeeping power got here underneath fireplace whereas in mid-air, the U.N. mission known as MONUSCO mentioned.

The helicopter was in a position to land within the provincial capital Goma. It was attacked after taking off from town of Beni within the early afternoon.

One peacekeeper was additionally severely wounded within the assault, MONUSCO mentioned in a press release, which didn’t say who is likely to be accountable. The assertion didn’t say what weapon was fired on the helicopter or what triggered the casualties.

A U.N. peacekeeping mission of round 18,200 personnel has been deployed in japanese Congo since taking up from a earlier U.N. operation in 2010. Its mandate consists of supporting the Congolese authorities’s effort to stabilise a area racked by insurgent violence.

Eight peacekeepers have been killed final 12 months when their helicopter crashed in part of North Kivu province, the place the Congolese military was combating a insurgent group often known as the M23.

(Reporting by Fiston Mahamba, Erikas Mwisi Kambale, Sonia Rolley; Modifying by Alessandra Prentice)