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The military says the coup was “nipped in the bud” by the forces and the perpetrators were arrested, including foreigners.
Three people were killed in the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) following a shootout between gunmen in military uniform and the guards of a prominent politician – an incident that the army described as an attempted coup d’état.
Two police officers and one of the attackers were among those killed in the shootout that began in the early hours of Sunday.
A DR Congo military spokesman said in a televised speech that the perpetrators of the failed takeover attempt, including several foreigners, had been arrested.
Brigadier General Sylvain Ekenge told reporters that the coup attempt was “nipped in the bud by the Congolese defense and security forces”. [and] the situation is under control.” He did not give further details.
The incident occurred amid a crisis plaguing President Felix Tshisekedi’s ruling party over a parliamentary leadership election that was supposed to be held on Saturday but was postponed.
The armed men attacked the Kinshasa residence of Vital Kamerhe, a federal lawmaker and candidate for president of the DR Congo National Assembly, but were detained by his guards, Michel Moto Muhima, his spokesman said on the social media platform .
“The Honorable Vital Kamerhe and his family are safe and sound. Their security has been beefed up,” he wrote.
DR Congo media identified the men as Congolese soldiers. It was not clear whether the men in military uniform were trying to arrest the politician.
Images, apparently from the area, showed military trucks and heavily armed men parading through the neighborhood’s deserted streets.
On Friday, Tshisekedi met with parliamentarians and leaders of the ruling Sacred Union of the Nation coalition, in an attempt to resolve the crisis within his party, which dominates the national assembly.
He said he would not hesitate “to dissolve the National Assembly and send everyone to new elections if these bad practices persist”.
Tshisekedi was re-elected president in December in a chaotic vote amid calls for the opposition to recall him over what they saw as a lack of transparency, following past trends in disputed elections in the Central African country.
The US embassy in DR Congo issued a security alert, urging caution following “reports of gunfire”.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
