Red Cross says 8 staff kidnapped by armed group in eastern Congo

Red Cross: 8 staff kidnapped in eastern Congo

GENEVA — Eight Red Cross workers have been kidnapped by a militia group in eastern Congo and negotiations are under way to secure their release, the aid group said Tuesday.

One Congolese official said the seizure of the aid workers was an attempt by the rebels “to use them as human shields” and prevent a planned army assault.

The seven Congolese and one Swiss national were kidnapped Friday near the town of Fizi in Congo’s South Kivu province by the Mai Mai Yakutumba rebels, the International Committee of the Red Cross said in Geneva.

“We are negotiating with them and insisting on the immediate release of our colleagues,” Red Cross spokeswoman Nicole Engelbrecht told The Associated Press. She said the captors have made no demand for ransom and the Red Cross never pays any.

A Congo Army spokesman in South Kivu province, Capt. Olivier Hamuli, said the Mai Mai had seized the Red Cross staff to thwart a planned Congolese army attack on their hideouts.

“We know where ICRC are kept in their captivity but we cannot attack the area to avoid putting their lives in danger,” he said.

Hamuli said the Mai Mai have refused to join the 2009 government disarmament and integration program because they believe they are protecting their tribe.

The Red Cross has several offices in South Kivu, which like much of eastern Congo has been wracked by violence since the 1994 genocide in neighboring Rwanda spilled war across the border.

The shadowy Mai Mai militia is one of many armed groups in the area. Their fighters have been seen using rudimentary weapons like spears and are believed to value mysticism.

Franz Rauchenstein, the head of the ICRC’s mission in Congo, said his group’s mission was to protect and assist victims of the violence.

“We continue to insist that the strictly neutral, impartial and humanitarian nature of our work be recognized, and that our colleagues be able to return to their loved ones soon,” he said.

Three foreign Red Cross workers were kidnapped in the Philippines last year, and French staff members were seized in Chad and Sudan. All have since been released.

Associated Press Writer Patrice Citera in Kinshasa, Congo, contributed to this report.