KINSHASA: A Democratic Republic of Congo military court sentenced six men to life in prison over the death of the Italian ambassador, his bodyguard and driver, a lawyer said on Friday.
Envoy Luca Attanasio, Italian bodyguard Vittorio Iacovacci and their Congolese driver Mustapha Milambo were killed on Feb. 22, 2021, during a botched kidnapping as they drove to a World Food Programme project from the eastern city of Goma.
A lawyer representing Italy, Boniface Balamage, told Reuters that five of the people sentenced to life were already in prison while one was at large and tried in absentia.
“On the day when justice took its course, we celebrate the shining example and commitment of Luca, Vittorio and Moussa,” the Italian embassy in Kinshasa tweeted.
According to Congo’s presidency, six armed men intercepted the two-car convoy on the road, killed Milambo and led six passengers away. Army and park rangers tracked the group and a firefight ensued during which the kidnappers shot the two Italians.
At the time, Congo’s interior ministry blamed a Hutu militia called the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR). But the armed group denied any involvement and condemned what it called a “cowardly assassination.”
It was not immediately possible to confirm the court decision with Congolese authorities.
Congo sentences six to life in prison over death of Italian envoy
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Congo sentences six to life in prison over death of Italian envoy
- Envoy Luca Attanasio, Italian bodyguard Vittorio Iacovacci and their Congolese driver Mustapha Milambo were killed on Feb. 22, 2021
- A lawyer representing Italy, Boniface Balamage, said five of the people sentenced to life were already in prison
Bangladesh’s religio-political party open to unity govt
- Opinion polls suggest that Jamaat-e-Islami will finish a close second to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party in the first election it has contested in nearly 17 years
DHAKA: A once-banned Bangladeshi religio-political party, poised for its strongest electoral showing in February’s parliamentary vote, is open to joining a unity government and has held talks with several parties, its chief said.
Opinion polls suggest that Jamaat-e-Islami will finish a close second to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party in the first election it has contested in nearly 17 years as it marks a return to mainstream politics in the predominantly Muslim nation of 175 million.
Jamaat last held power between 2001 and 2006 as a junior coalition partner with the BNP and is open to working with it again.
“We want to see a stable nation for at least five years. If the parties come together, we’ll run the government together,” Jamaat chief Shafiqur Rahman said in an interview at his office in a residential area in Dhaka, days after the party created a buzz by securing a tie-up with a Gen-Z party.
Rahman said anti-corruption must be a shared agenda for any unity government.
The prime minister will come from the party winning the most seats in the Feb. 12 election, he added. If Jamaat wins the most seats, the party will decide whether he himself would be a candidate, Rahman said.
The party’s resurgence follows the ousting of long-time Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a youth-led uprising in August 2024.
Rahman said Hasina’s continued stay in India after fleeing Dhaka was a concern, as ties between the two countries have hit their lowest point in decades since her downfall.
Asked about Jamaat’s historical closeness to Pakistan, Rahman said: “We maintain relations in a balanced way with all.”
He said any government that includes Jamaat would “not feel comfortable” with President Mohammed Shahabuddin, who was elected unopposed with the Awami League’s backing in 2023.
