DR Congo: Americans involved in foiled deadly coup, army says

CNN
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American citizens were involved in an attempted coup that left at least three people dead in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday, a military spokesperson told CNN on Monday.

The attempted coup, which targeted the residence of Congolese politician Vital Kamerhe and the country’s presidential palace, was led by opposition leader Christian Malanga, who was killed in a shootout between armed putschists and the presidential guard, according to army spokesperson General Sylvain Ekenge. . Ekenge also claimed that Malanga was a US citizen, although the State Department later said it had no record of him.

“I confirm the death of Christian Malanga neutralized during the exchange of fire at the Palais de la Nation (presidential palace),” Ekenge told CNN, adding that Malanga’s son, Marcel, “was among those arrested.”

Ekenge named three other Americans, identified as Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, Patrick Ducey and Taylor Thomson, involved in the foiled coup.

“Patrick Ducey and Taylor Thomson are the same person and have two different identities. We will check his passport,” he added.

U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the United States is aware of two other individuals “believed to be” U.S. citizens who are in custody following the failed attempt. of a coup d’état. Miller said privacy laws prevented him from confirming whether the United States had contacted the Congolese government to obtain consular access to the two people.

Videos widely shared on social media, but not verified by CNN, showed a man with a bloody face being surrounded by Congolese soldiers.

US Ambassador to the DRC Lucy Tamlyn said in a post on social media platform X that she was “shocked” by reports of the attempted coup, adding that her country “would cooperate fully with the DRC authorities during their investigation. these criminal acts and hold accountable any American citizen involved in criminal acts.

It was not immediately known whether President Félix Tshisekedi, who won re-election for a second term after last December’s disputed vote, was at the presidential palace at the time of the attack.

Sunday’s incident was the second attempted coup led by the now-deceased Malanga, a former Congolese army veteran, Ekenge told CNN.

“He tried unsuccessfully in 2017,” Ekenge said without providing further details.

Malanga, 41, exiled in the United States, led the United Congolese Party, which describes itself as an “opposition political party in exile.”

Flanked by his son and other armed men in military uniform, Malanga was seen in a live-streamed video posted on his Facebook page, insulting the government of Tshisekedi and Kamerhe on the morning of the attack, accusing them of ” a lot of stupid things in this country.” ”, according to Reuters.

A DRC government statement praised the “rapid response” of DRC security forces who foiled the attack, saying two police officers stationed at the Kamerhe politician’s home “were killed instantly.”

The DRC, the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa, is one of the five poorest countries in the world, according to the World Bank, despite its vast mineral wealth.

Parts of the central African country are almost overrun by armed militias who stage deadly attacks on civilians in their fight for territory and control of the country’s natural resources.

Sub-Saharan Africa is grappling with a series of coups, the latest taking place last August in Gabon, the DRC’s Central African neighbor.

The African Union has condemned today’s attempted coup in the DRC and praised the “control of the situation” by the country’s security forces.

CNN’s Kylie Atwood contributed to this report.