Beni, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Beni is a city in north eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, lying immediately west of the Virunga National Park and the Rwenzori Mountains, on the edge of the Ituri Forest.
Beni | |
---|---|
City | |
Ville de Beni | |
Part of Nationale 2, main road in Beni | |
Beni Location in Democratic Republic of the Congo | |
Coordinates: 0°30′N 29°28′E | |
Country | |
Province | North Kivu |
Government | |
• Mayor | Nyonyi Bwanakawa Masumbuko[1] |
Population (2013) | |
• Total | 231,952 |
Time zone | UTC+2 (Central Africa Time) |
Climate | Af |
Overview
It is home to a market, an airport and the Christian Bilingual University of Congo (UCBC). As of 2013 it had an estimated population of 231,952.[2] Beni contains four communes, or municipalities: Beni, Bungulu, Ruwenzori and Muhekera.
The town was the scene of fierce fighting in the Second Congo War around 2001. Beni also has many MONUC bases; elements of the Indian-led North Kivu Brigade are based in the town.
Between October 2014 and May 2016 over 500 people died in a series of attacks on Beni and its surrounding area that have been attributed to Ugandan Islamist rebels.[3] The Beni massacre occurred here in August 2016.
As of December 2018 Beni has been subject to over 200 cases of Ebola virus disease (EVD) according to the WHO.[4] Beni is near Mangina, the epicenter of the 2018–19 Kivu Ebola outbreak. [5]
On the third of June 2019 an attack in the city killed or wounded 25 people. ISIL claimed responsibility shortly afterwards.[6]
References
- Kakulirahi, Roger (25 June 2019). "RDC-Beni : le Maire de la ville condamne l'incendie d'une jeep de la riposte Ebola". Depeche.cd (in French). Retrieved 10 August 2019.
- Institut National de la Statistique (November 2014). "Superficie et Densité de la Population en 2013". Bulletin Annuel des Statistiques Sociales, Province du Nord-Kivu (2013): 19.
- Congo police arrest at least four activists protesting massacres Archived 2016-06-11 at the Wayback Machine, SABC, 14 May 2016. Accessed 17 May 2016.
- WHO - World Health Organisation. WHO - World Health Organisation https://www.who.int/csr/don/13-December-2018-ebola-drc/en/. Retrieved 17 December 2018. Missing or empty
|title=
(help) - "Democratic Republic of the Congo: Between Ebola and machetes". International Committee of the Red Cross. 2018-11-27.
- "ISIL claims deadly attack in Ebola-wracked eastern DR Congo | ISIS/ISIL News | al Jazeera".