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KINSHASA, Congo — Congolese police have arrested six people over a break-in and vandalism earlier this week at the mausoleum of the country’s assassinated independence leader Patrice Lumumba in Congo’s capital, Kinshasa. Jacquemin Shabani, the country’s interior minister, told reporters that Lumumba’s tooth was not damaged during the break-in. The return of Lumumba’s tooth from former colonizer Belgium in 2022 …

GOMA, Congo — Elisha Manishimwe longs to return to his village in eastern Congo to vote in this month’s presidential election. On Monday, the U.S. State Department announced a 72-hour cease-fire in eastern Congo, but some of the more than 120 active rebel groups quickly distanced themselves from it, and Congo’s government had no comment. Whoever is elected president should …

Chad’s military government agrees to opposition leader’s return from exile

KINSHASA, Congo — Chad’s military government has agreed to allow the return of opposition leader Succes Masra, who fled the country last year amid a political clampdown, the Congolese presidency announced Tuesday. Abderaman Koulamallah, the Chadian minister of reconciliation, signed an agreement on Monday with Masra’s political party that allows the exiled politician and other opposition figures to return, according …

Before opening its doors to those seeking refuge in the UK, Rwanda should tackle the issues that lead Rwandans to flee and refuse to return home. However, Rwanda itself creates thousands of refugees every year and its government is yet to guarantee a safe environment for Rwandan refugees settled across the world to return home. Unlike Rwanda’s previous governments, the …

DRC says it has agreed ‘de-escalation process’ with Rwanda following weeks of rising tensions over rebel fighting. Rwanda and Democratic Republic of the Congo have agreed to a “de-escalation process” following one-day talks between their presidents, mediated by Angola, amid rising tensions over the activities of the M23 rebel group, the Congolese presidency said. It also called for a return …

Belgium returns Congo independence hero’s tooth to family

BRUSSELS — Belgian authorities on Monday returned a gold-capped tooth belonging to the slain Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba, as the former colonial power continues to confront its bloody past and look toward reconciliation. Following a private ceremony in the presence of relatives of Lumumba during which the federal prosecutor handed over a case containing the tooth, Belgium’s prime minister …

Belgium's Africa Museum begins long road to return looted artworks to Congo

Belgium's Africa Museum, once a celebration of the country's colonial rule, will begin a multi-year process of returning stolen art to Democratic Republic of Congo, the Belgian government said on Tuesday. An ancestral statue known as Lusinga, dated to the 19th century, is pictured at the Royal Museum for Central Africa as the Belgian government has announced plans to return …

Activists who want museums to return artifacts taken during eras of colonialism tried to take a wooden statue from the Afrika Museum in Berg en Dal. While on camera, Diyabanza gave a short speech before a colleague handed him the statue and he walked out of the Gelderland museum with the item in his hands. Diyabanza said he had more …