Islamic State claims responsibility for Dec 25 suicide attack in Congo

Reuters, via the National Post of Canada

CAIRO — Islamic State has claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing that killed at least five people in a restaurant in the city of Beni in eastern Congo on Dec. 25, the group’s Amaq news agency said on a Telegram channel on Monday.

The suicide bomber was also killed and 14 people were injured in the attack,

As France 24 reported at the time

“The suicide bomber, prevented by security from gaining access to the bar, packed with clients, activated the bomb at the entrance,” said a statement from military officials running North Kivu province. Officials blamed the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) militia, one of the deadliest armed groups in the region and claimed by the Islamic State group as its central Africa arm.

An AFP correspondent saw the remains of three bodies at the site of the explosion, the In Box restaurant. The remains of tables, chairs, bottles and glasses were scattered across the blast site. One city hall source told AFP that two children were among the dead, as well as two local officials. More than 30 people were celebrating Christmas there when the bomb went off, two witnesses told AFP.