Summary:

• The Democratic Republic of Congo’s army (FARDC) thwarted a coup attempt targeting the Presidential Palace early Sunday, May 19. Brigadier General Sylvain Ekenge announced on national TV that several perpetrators were arrested, and the situation is now under control. The attack involved around twenty armed men in Kinshasa, leading to a gunfight that killed two police officers and one attacker.

DR CONGO, (Examiner) – The Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) have successfully thwarted an attempted coup targeting the Presidential Palace in the early hours of Sunday, May 19.

Brigadier General Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for FARDC, made the announcement in a brief message broadcast on national television. He confirmed that the army had acted swiftly, arresting several perpetrators during the operation. “The situation is under control,” he assured, urging Kinshasa residents to continue their daily activities without fear.

The coup attempt followed a night of gunfire in the Gombe district of Kinshasa, where about twenty armed men attempted to storm the residence of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Economy, Vital Kamerhe. The attack resulted in the deaths of two police officers and one attacker.

According to sources within FARDC Command, President Felix Tshisekedi was not in office when the attackers targeted his office. Armored vehicles were deployed from the Pullman Hotel to the presidential palace along Tshatshi Boulevard around 4:30 a.m. The Congolese military quickly secured strategic positions around key locations, including the Pullman Hotel and the Fleuve du Congo Hotel in Kinshasa. Witnesses reported that some attackers fled toward the Palais de la Nation (Presidential Palace), where they were surrounded and apprehended.

High-placed sources revealed that the attackers abandoned a minibus in the street and that some of those arrested were found with U.S. and Canadian passports, corroborated by online posts from independent reporters in DR Congo.

The attackers, dressed in military uniforms with the Zaire flag, claimed in videos posted online that they sought “change in the management of the country.” It is believed that the group was led by Christian Malanga, who, according to FARDC top commanders, was killed during the operations.

Despite the night’s turmoil, Kinshasa residents were seen filling up Stade Martyrs to watch artist Moise Mbiye. Vital Kamerhe and his family, though threatened, were reported to be in good health but in shock.

With extracts from Agencies