Calls are growing for urgent military action in Ituri after It was reported that more than 300 civilians were abducted over two days by suspected Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) fighters along the Mambasa-Komanda axis. The attacks, reported between March 28 and March 29 in Irumu territory, also reportedly left several people dead and triggered fresh panic along National Route 4.

According to local sources cited by the outlet, the first incursion took place in Babungwe, where about 100 civilians, most of them farmers, were allegedly taken. A second attack was then reported in Lomalisa on Sunday morning, with more than 200 other civilians said to have been captured before the assailants moved through Mabukulu and Masoli.

Local human rights defenders say the scale of the hostage-taking has sharpened fears of further killings in the forest and exposed the vulnerability of communities living along the road corridor. One activist cited by the report put the number of civilians believed to be in rebel hands at 388, though that figure had not been officially confirmed by authorities by Monday morning.

The latest incident comes amid a wider resurgence of ADF violence in Mambasa. Earlier in March, Radio Okapi reported that around 50 people were killed in attacks attributed to the group in the same territory, underlining the repeated exposure of civilians to raids, killings and looting.

The broader security picture has also drawn international concern. In a March 25 statement, the UN human rights office said the ADF had expanded operations across Ituri, North Kivu and Tshopo since October, killing more than 260 people and displacing many thousands.

That wider context has reinforced local demands for faster protection measures and more effective rescue efforts in eastern DR Congo.

Territorial authorities were expected to comment on the reported abductions, while civil society groups continued pressing for large-scale operations to free the captives and secure the axis.