Democratic Republic of Congo’s military said on Sunday it had thwarted a coup attempt involving foreigners, hours after a shootout near the presidential palace left at least three people dead.
Army spokesman Brigadier General issued a brief statement on national television. General Sylvain Ekenger initially gave no details about the alleged coup in the capital Kinshasa, saying only that the plotters and their leaders had “lost action.”
But he later told The Associated Press that three Americans were among the perpetrators, and U.S. Ambassador to Congo Lucy Tamlin publicly acknowledged that U.S. citizens may also have been involved.
The United States will cooperate “to the fullest extent” with Congolese authorities “to investigate these crimes and hold accountable all U.S. citizens involved.” she said on X (formerly Twitter).
Her statement came hours after a video was widely shared on social media showing A white man with blood on his face Sitting at the feet of Congolese soldiers – one of three Americans accused by the military of involvement.
President Felix Tshisekedi, who was re-elected in December after a chaotic vote, was not injured in the incident. But its brief and apparently confusing nature, with its many incongruous details, left many Congolese confused on Sunday and sparked intense speculation about who was behind it, or whether it was a genuine coup attempt.
A wave of military takeovers Situations in Central and West Africa in recent years have alarmed Washington because they have undermined democracy in the region and provided Russia with an opportunity to expand its influence. In Niger, where the military seized power last August, the government is urging the United States to withdraw its troops from bases where Russian personnel began arriving.
Congo has become a focus of U.S. Africa policy because of its rich reserves of cobalt, a key mineral for the production of electric vehicles.China Owns or controls most of Congo’s cobalt production siteswhich is a concern for the Biden administration.
But while most recent coups in the region have been led by senior military officers from those countries, Sunday’s alleged coup in Kinshasa appears to have been led by an obscure U.S. opposition politician and has little hope of success. Very little. .
At around 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, a group of armed men attacked the Kinshasa home of Vital Kamerhe, a lawmaker and candidate for speaker of the National Assembly, just over a mile from the presidential palace.
A shootout broke out and two police officers and an attacker were killed, Mr Kammer’s spokesman Japan’s ambassador to Congo also expressed his opinion on social media.
The attackers then moved toward the presidential palace, Congolese news media reported. Meanwhile Christian Malanga, Congolese rivals in exile The government, which leads a small opposition party, released a live video in which he appeared to be leading the attack.
The video, which The Times could not independently verify, shows Malanga, 40, surrounded by men in military fatigues, some with American flags taped to their vests. “Felix, you’re out,” he said. “We’re here to pick you up.”
But when the attackers reached the nearby presidential palace, soldiers intercepted and arrested them, the military and local media reported. Photos of Malanga’s body later circulated, and army spokesman General Ekenge told The Associated Press that he was killed while resisting arrest.
The suspect’s name was not immediately released, but images on social media provided clues.
As well as footage of a blood-stained white man lying on the ground sitting next to Mr Malanga’s son, an American, images also circulated showing another American, Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polan. Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, who was also said to be involved in the incident. .News report previously determined He is a cannabis entrepreneur involved in gold mining with Mr Malanga.
Dino Mahtani, a former United Nations investigator on Congo, said Congolese authorities told him in 2018 that they suspected Mr Malanga of plotting to assassinate former President Joseph Kabila.
President Tshisekedi did not appear to be facing any immediate danger on Sunday; he is known to live several miles from the presidential palace and his residence is in another part of the city.
A Website in the name of Mr. Malanga said his family settled in Salt Lake City in the 1990s as part of a refugee resettlement program. According to reports, he participated in the U.S. Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps.
Reports say he returned to Congo in 2011 to run for political office, but was arrested on “false charges” and held for weeks by police who beat him.
A year later, he returned to the United States, where he formed the United Congolese Party, “a grassroots platform uniting the Congolese diaspora around the world to oppose the current Congolese dictatorship,” according to the website.
