ADF Islamists Impose US$13 Tax on Leta Residents Eastern DRC

Residents of Leta Crédit village in the Mambasa territory of Ituri province are facing growing insecurity after suspected Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels reportedly occupied the area and imposed taxes on civilians, according to a report by Radio Okapi. The incident was reported following an attack on May 5 in the Babila Bakwanza chiefdom.

Local sources cited by the outlet said around eighty armed fighters entered the village in the afternoon as farmers were returning from their fields. Witnesses alleged that some attackers included children carrying rifles and machetes. Residents were reportedly ordered to pay a monthly tax of 30,000 Congolese francs roughly US$13 to access farmland surrounding the village.

According to local community leaders, civilians refusing to comply were threatened with violence and death. Human rights activists in the area linked the situation to the limited presence of state authorities in parts of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where armed groups continue to operate.

The broader security crisis involving the ADF has been repeatedly documented by the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the DRC and regional security observers.

Eastern Congo has faced years of instability driven by armed groups operating across Ituri and North Kivu provinces. The ADF, originally formed in Uganda, has been blamed for numerous deadly attacks against civilians in the region, according to previous reporting.

Analysts say illegal taxation and parallel administration systems are often used by insurgent groups to tighten control over isolated rural communities.

Some of the attackers reportedly withdrew later in the evening after taking livestock and valuables from residents. Authorities in Mambasa territory had not publicly commented on the incident at the time of publication.

Source: Okapi