(Reuters) -Footage has emerged showing the leader of an attempted coup in Democratic Republic of Congo broadcasting live on Facebook from inside the presidential palace shortly before he was killed by authorities following the failed putsch on Sunday.
In the video, Christian Malanga, named by the army as the ringleader, declares in the Lingala language: “We, the militants, are tired. We cannot drag on with Tshisekedi.”
Reuters was able to independently verify the location as the palace in Kinshasa by matching imagery to satellite data and file photos. The news agency also confirmed the date through corroborating information.
The government said Malanga, a US-based Congolese politician, was killed when his forces attacked the palace and residence of parliament speaker hopeful Vital Kamerhe in the early hours of Sunday.
Around 50 people including three American citizens were arrested, army spokesman Sylvain Ekenge told Reuters, adding that one of the US nationals was Malanga’s son.
A multiagency team consisting of detectives from the DCI Transnational Organised Crime and Interpol have taken up the case in which two Kenya Airways (KQ) employees have been detained since February 19 2024 by the Congolese Military Intelligence Unit Militaire des Activities Anti Patrie (DEMIAP).
In a situation that is now fueling tensions between Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who already have a strained relationship, Kenya Insights has learned of unspecified amount of gold that is suspected to have been smuggled from the mineral rich country and cash going to reveal a lightly kept secret in the fiasco.
The airline’s employees were detained for allegedly failing to complete customs documentation for the valuable cargo. Despite a military court’s order for their release, they remain in custody, complicating the situation further.
While making the initial announcement explained that the said cargo was not uplifted or accepted by KQ due to incomplete documentation asserting that duo was illegally detained.
“This cargo was still in the baggage section undergoing clearance when the security team arrived and alleged that KQ was transporting cargo without customs clearance,” he said, adding that all efforts to explain to the military officers that KQ had not accepted the cargo because of incomplete documentation were unsuccessful.
Cash
Kenya Insights now has information that the detainees, a Kenyan Lydia Olando Maloba and her Congolese colleague Olivier Lufungula were apprehended for their involvement in an incident concerning the attempted export of $8 million (Sh1billion) in banknotes, purportedly unfit for circulation.
The funds were destined for the reserve federal office in New York but were intercepted by Congolese security forces at N’djili International Airport, reportedly concealed in crates.
The military intelligence is reportedly suspecting that the cash was destined for funding rebels in the country.
Gold smuggling ring
Kenya Insights has also learned of an active investigation by the DCI and Interpol into a gold smuggling syndicate that allegedly involved the detained employees.
Behind the scenes, detectives familiar with the happenings in Kinshasa says that military intelligence in Kinshasa has also questioned the two staff over the shipment of three tonnes of gold at different times which was earlier moved to Kenya and then to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Sources say that happened sometime in November 2023 without proper documentation.
The consignment is said to have gone missing at JKIA customs with the help of an elaborate team of agents and top staff of a respected humanitarian agency, aviation operatives have been linked to the disappearance of the cargo.
Consequently, security agents consisting of intelligence officers and Interpol have been dispatched to the UAE to unearth the smuggled goods whose proceeds are suspected to be used to fund rebel groups (namely M23 and/or the Alliance Fleuve Congo Group) in DRC. The sources claimed that unscrupulous buyers were behind the disappearance of the cargo and at one time visited Kenya. The said cartels are operating majorly in the UAE and are well-connected.
Reports also indicate that Foreign Affairs Ministry said the Kenyan delegation dispatched to DRC will be negotiating for the release of the detained KQ staff while Kenyan investigators will help probe the missing cargo that originated from Nairobi.
Korir Sing’oei, the principal secretary at Kenya’s foreign affairs ministry, emphasized Kenya’s commitment to protecting its citizens abroad and stated that the government was actively engaging with the situation.
Suspension of flights to Kinshasa
In a move reflecting deepening diplomatic tensions, Kenya Airways on Monday announced the suspension of its flights to Kinshasa, effective April 30, 2024.
The decision follows unresolved issues related to the detention of two airline employees. The airline said it had resorted to suspending flights to Kinshasa as its operations were suffering due to lack of adequate support.
Kenya Airways, in its statement, cited the ongoing detention and the broader geopolitical tensions as key factors in its decision to suspend flights. “The safety and well-being of our employees are paramount, and the current diplomatic environment has made it challenging to operate effectively in Kinshasa,” said a spokesperson for Kenya Airways.
This development coincides with escalating regional tensions, notably due to the formation of a controversial Congolese military alliance in Nairobi, which includes the M23 rebel group.
Diplomatic tensions
The crisis unfolds against a backdrop of increased friction between Kenya and the DRC, following recent political maneuvers. Congolese politicians and groups, including the M23 rebels, launched the Congo River Alliance in Nairobi. The alliance aims to unify various Congolese armed groups and political organizations. The inclusion of the M23 rebels, who are active in the eastern DRC and have been implicated in territorial conflicts, has particularly strained relations.
This move prompted the DRC to recall its ambassador from Kenya, underscoring the severity of the diplomatic rift. The DRC’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Alain Tshibanda, announced the recall on the X social media platform, highlighting the contentious nature of the newly formed military alliance hosted by Kenya.
As the situation develops, regional stakeholders are keenly observing the impact on diplomatic and economic relations within the East African Community. Kenya Airways has committed to closely monitoring the situation and resuming flights when conditions permit.
Meanwhile, at least 12 people, including children, have been killed in twin bomb blasts that hit two camps for displaced people in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to government officials, the United Nations and an aid group.
Friday’s explosions targeted the camps in Lac Vert and Mugunga, near the city of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, the UN said in a statement.
The attacks, in which at least 20 people were injured, were a “flagrant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law and may constitute a war crime”, it said.
The Congolese military and the United States accused the military in neighbouring Rwanda and the M23 rebel group of being behind the attacks.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Rwanda must halt its support for M23, during a joint news conference with Tshisekedi in Paris this week.
About six million people have been killed since violence erupted in 1996. It has also displaced about seven million people, many beyond the reach of aid.
Abbott Laboratories, an American medical Devices and Health Care Company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States’s team of scientists and researchers have identified a new subtype of HIV, dubbed HIV-1 Group M, subtype L.
In a publication by the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (JAIDS), the findings show the role next-generation genome sequencing is playing in helping researchers stay one step ahead of mutating viruses and averting new pandemics.
Since the beginning of the global AIDS pandemic, 75 million people have been infected, despite formidable challenges, the global health community has been tirelessly working on the goal to end HIV pandemic over the past few decades. Their efforts are becoming feasible as the records indicate that 37.9 million people today are currently living with the lethal virus.
“In an increasingly connected world, we can no longer think of viruses being contained in one location. This discovery reminds us that to end the HIV pandemic, we must continue to outthink this continuously changing virus and use the latest advancements in technology and resources to monitor its evolution,” said Carole McArthur, Ph.D., M.D., a professor in the departments of oral and craniofacial sciences, University of Missouri — Kansas City, and one of the study authors.
This research marks the first time a new subtype of “Group M” HIV virus has been identified since guidelines for classifying new strains of HIV were established in the year 2000.
Group M viruses, which are traced back to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Sub-Saharan Africa, are responsible for the global HIV pandemic.
To determine whether an unusual virus is, in fact, a new HIV subtype, three cases must be discovered independently.
The first two samples of this subtype were discovered in DRC in the 1980s and the 1990s. The third, collected in 2001, was difficult to sequence at that time because of the amount of virus in the sample and the existing technology.
Today, next-generation sequencing technology allows researchers to build an entire genome at higher speeds and lower costs. In order to utilize this technology, Abbott scientists developed and applied new techniques to help narrow in on the virus portion of the sample to fully sequence and complete the genome.
“Identifying new viruses such as this one is like searching for a needle in a haystack. By advancing our techniques and using next-generation sequencing technology, we are pulling the needle out with a magnet. This scientific discovery can help us ensure we are stopping new pandemics in their tracks,” said Mary Rodgers, Ph.D., a principal scientist and head of the Global Viral Surveillance Program, Diagnostics, Abbott, and one of the study authors.
Abbott, the leader in blood screening and infectious disease testing created its Global Viral Surveillance Program 25 years ago to monitor HIV and hepatitis viruses and identify mutations to ensure the company’s diagnostic tests remain up to date.
The US-based Abbott in partnership with global blood centers, hospitals, and Academic Institutions has collected over 78,000 samples of HIV+ and Hepatitis Viruses from 45 countries.
Abbott has also identified and characterized more than 5,000 strains and published 125 research papers, all that has been tapped to be useful in helping the scientific community learn more about these pernicious viruses.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum the leader of Emirate of Dubai has filled complain to Kenya that an opposition senator has conned the Royal family Ksh 400 million of gold.
The opposition senator is among a gang of six cartels that are under the keen eye of DCI’s investigations of their involvement in the Gold scam. The gold fraud has implied strong complaints from the Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates.
The DCI is trailing a scheme that saw the royal family scammed multi-millions allegedly to secure a release of 5 tons of gold that had been purportedly seized at JKIA.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations says the alleged seizure was, supposedly, to be the first batch of a 23 tons gold shipment that was to be illegally brought in the country from DRC.
The trail has unraveled that the opposition senator flew to Dubai severally to persuade Royal Family that he has associates who would release alleged seized gold.
The said opposition Senator, a politician and a businessman who runs a private jet leasing company at Wilson Airport have since denied all the allegations from the Royal family.
Preliminary investigations show that the scheme started September 25, last year when the Senator and his group approached a nephew of Sheikh Maktoum, Mr Ali Zandi. Ali is a representative of Dubai based gold trading company, Zlivia.
The cartel told Mr. Ali that they can deliver 4.6tons of gold from DRC. They had secured services of a Russian gold dealer who wanted down payments and transportation charges to Dubai.
The senator and his cronies contacted Mr. Ali on September 27 alleging that the gold consignment had been incarcerated by customs officials at JKIA.
Investigations indicate that Massoud Zandi a representative of Zlivia Gold Trading Company called the Senator for help and on 15th December last year the opposition senator flew to Dubai on the invitation of Mr. Zandi.
The senator demanded cash to ease the release of the alleged confiscated consignment. Mr. Zandi was of the contrary opinion and flew in the country on 24th December last year with hopes of meeting a senior Kenyan government official.
Mr Zandi could not manage a sit down with the government official instead the senator and his cartels took Zandi to JKIA and showed him sealed boxes allegedly holding Gold.
On January 21, this year, Zandi was secretly moved at night to meet a Cabinet secretary imposter at a Karen Hotel. The senior government imposter met Mr. Zandi in a car in the presence of the Senator.
They, the Senator and the CS imposter guaranteed Zandi that his Gold will be released in a week time after he flies out back to Dubai. Zandi says he has neither received his gold nor heard from the six cartels months later.
Sheikh Maktoum has forwarded a written complain to Kenya through the Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i. The Royal family leader has requested immediate actions to those involved in masterminding a gold scam against the Family.
Sheikh decided to contact the government directly after the cartels lied to him that the delay to release the consignment was caused the DusitD2 attack.
“Nevertheless, now we need your immediate and strong action to release the totality of Zlivia Gold shipment to UEA as soon as possible and accordingly to the instructions by our General Manager Mr Zandi who is there in Kenya to organize the shipment.” Quote from the Sheikh’s letter to interior CS dated 20th January.
Since the Shiekh wanted the matter to be solved as soon as possible, a Russian national Yulian Stankov and Mohammed Rashi both wanted international scammers were on Friday arraigned before the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi. The two are said to be in connection of the Ksh 400 Million scam.
Investigators told the court that Stankov did not have any identification documents. He was arrested after saying that he’s shipping 5tons of gold to Dubai.
DCI Investigators demanded the permission to access cell phones of the accused persons to aid in the investigations of their involvement in the gold scam and other related Cybercrimes.
