UN discovers 280 mutilated bodies

THE mutilated bodies of 280 people have been discovered in the town of Bunia in eastern Congo after days of fighting between tribal militias, a United Nations official said yesterday.

Youths armed with spears, knives and bows and arrows from the Hema and Lendu tribes have been battling for supremacy in Bunia since the Ugandan army pulled out of the town early in May.

Hundreds of people are thought to have died with thousands fleeing their homes in terror, but a measure of calm has settled in since a ceasefire signed by members of the militia groups and President Joseph Kabila took effect on Saturday.