UNGA President 'Appalled' Italian Ambassador To DRC Assassinated, Calls For Justice

UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir said in a statement on Monday that he was appalled to learn about the assassination of the Italian Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other members of a delegation visiting the North Kivu province, and called on the authorities to bring the perpetrators of the attack to justice

UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd February, 2021) UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir said in a statement on Monday that he was appalled to learn about the assassination of the Italian Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other members of a delegation visiting the North Kivu province, and called on the authorities to bring the perpetrators of the attack to justice.

Earlier on Monday, the World food Program (WFP) said three people were killed, including Italian Ambassador Luca Attanasio in an attack on a delegation traveling in the North Kivu province to visit a WFP school feeding program in the town of Rutshuru.

"I am appalled to learn that Italian Ambassador Luca Attanasio [and his] colleagues were killed during a heinous attack while on their way to visit a school," Bozkir said via Twitter. "The perpetrators need to be brought to justice."

North Kivu, located next to the border with Rwanda and Uganda, is a home province of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) group that brings together Islamic extremistsa nd forces opposed to longtime Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni. The ADF has operated in the province since the late 1990s. In 2017, the group swore allegiance to the Islamic State terror group (banned in Russia).