One American is dead and another was taken into custody after a coup attempt against the autocratic government of President Felix Tshisekedi in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The botched uprising, which started early on Sunday (May 19), resulted in the deaths of two police officers and one of the attackers, later identified as Christian Malanga, a Salt Lake City resident who came to the US in 1998 as a political refugee.
One American is dead andanother was takeninto custody after a coup attempt against the autocratic government of President Felix Tshisekedi in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Image credits:The Free Press Journal
Gunfire rang out around 4 a.m. in the capital, Kinshasa, aReutersreporter said. Armed men attacked the presidency in the city center, according to spokesman Sylvain Ekenge.
“The Honorable Vital Kamerhe and his family are safe and sound,” declared Kamerhe’s spokesman, Michel Moto, in a message published on his X profile.
41-year-old Utah resident Christian Malanga and his son, 21-year-old Marcel Malanga, were involved in the coup
Image credits:Marcel Malanga
Malanga was reportedly “neutralized” during the incident and was later identified as the leader of the attempted coup.
Malanga moved to the US alongside his parents and his five siblings, according to his father Joseph’s obituary, as per theDailyMail. The family lived in one of the poorest sections of the DRC capital of Kinshasa.
After unsuccessful efforts to enter politics in the DRC, Malanga returned to the US in 2012. Despite being in exile, he remained actively involved in the country’s political affairs.
Christian Malanga, founder of the United Congolese Party and leader of the failed uprising, was killed
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) armed forces repelled an attempted coup d’etat involving Congolese and foreign fighters on Sunday morning, a DRC army spokesperson said in a televised address..The army announces the arrest of American mercenaries.pic.twitter.com/Lfsv5FvINw
— African News feed. (@africansinnews)May 19, 2024
He founded a political party, the United Congolese Party, that gained popularity among exiled Congolese natives.
On hiswebsite, Malanga wrote that his time in the DRC military turned him against the government, as he witnessed corruption and a lack of concern for Congolese citizens.
People reacted to the news of the coup attempt
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