Kananga, DR Congo – One of the main suspects in the murder of two UN experts probing mass graves in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been arrested after a three-year manhunt for the militia chief, officials said on Sunday.
They had been investigating mass graves dug in a conflict between Congolese security forces and "Black Ant" rebel fighters in the central region of the DRC.
The European Union ambassador to the African country, Jean-Marc Chataigner, welcomed the militia chief's arrest and said he hoped it would allow a revival of the probe into the pair's death.
US ambassador to DR Congo, Mike Hammer, called the arrest "a step forward in the pursuit of justice", adding that America would "continue to support Congolese and UN efforts to uncover the truth.
Before he was arrested, Kankonde was in the process of reorganising the "Black Ant" militia with a view to attacking the city of Kananga, a Congolese security source told AFP.
