DRC: About 20 Dead in ADF Attack in Mambasa and Béni

Herz — World Desk · 25 July 2026 at 19:41 · 30s summary · 4 min read

What We Know

According to local civil society, as reported by France 24, about 20 people were killed on July 25, 2026, in an attack in Mambasa and Béni in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The attackers have been identified as members of the ADF—Allied Democratic Forces—a jihadist armed group of Ugandan origin, affiliated with the Islamic State, and active in eastern DRC.

The attack comes as the ADF intensify violence in the region and an Ebola virus disease outbreak spreads simultaneously across eastern DRC, according to reports from a single source.

Context: Who Are the ADF?

The Allied Democratic Forces are a rebel group founded in 1995 in Uganda by Islamic activists opposed to President Yoweri Museveni's government. From the late 1990s onward, the group crossed the border and settled in forested areas of eastern Congo, particularly in Ituri and North Kivu.

In April 2019, the Islamic State began claiming attacks by the ADF through its Amaq news agency, formalizing their affiliation under the label ISCAP—Islamic State Central Africa Province.

In 2021, the United States formally designated the ADF as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, according to the U.S. State Department. The Treasury Department also sanctioned the group under the SDGT (Specially Designated Global Terrorist) regime.

The territories of Béni and Mambasa have been among the hardest hit by ADF violence for years. Between 2014 and 2019, a wave of civilian massacres in these areas was documented by the UN Mission in DRC (MONUSCO) and human rights organizations.

Timeline

1. 1996–1998
   ADF founded in Uganda; group crosses border and settles in eastern Congo.
2. 2014–2019
   Wave of civilian massacres in Béni territory, attributed to ADF and documented by MONUSCO.
3. 2018–2020
   Tenth Ebola outbreak in DRC in Béni and Butembo region. Repeated attacks by ADF and other armed groups disrupted the international health response.
4. Islamic State begins claiming ADF attacks through its Amaq agency, formalizing their affiliation under the ISCAP label.