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Four South African soldiers killed in DRC, taking toll to 13

CONFLICT … Members of the M23 armed group walk alongside residents on a street in Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday. Photo: AFP

Four more South African soldiers have been killed in fighting against the M23 armed group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) said on Tuesday, after nine were killed last week.

Three soldiers were killed in fighting near Goma Airport on Monday, and another died after being wounded in an earlier battle, the SANDF said in a statement.

“The M23 rebels launched . . . a mortar bomb in the direction of Goma Airport, which landed in the SANDF base, and this resulted in the SANDF losing three members.

“Furthermore, the SANDF is also saddened to announce that one of our members who was injured during the battle with M23 rebels over the past three days later succumbed to injuries.”

The SANDF announced on Saturday that nine South African soldiers, including two from the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, were killed in clashes with M23 forces on Friday.

South Africa has also deployed troops to a regional force sent by the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Fighting has raged in Goma despite calls from the international community for the Rwandan-backed M23 to halt its advance on the city, which is in a mineral-rich part of the vast DRC and is home to more than a million people.

There were conflicting accounts over how much of Goma remained under Congolese control after the M23 group and Rwandan soldiers entered the city centre on Sunday night.

“The SANDF remains fully committed to its peacekeeping responsibilities under the Monusco and SADC Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo,” its statement said.

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