Christian Woman Held by ADF Rebels Since 2022 Rescued in Congo, ICC Says
Katungu Mbaka Darke told the ministry she was pressured to renounce her faith during years in captivity; Ugandan troops freed her in Ituri province.
ITURI, Congo —
A Christian woman abducted by Allied Democratic Forces rebels in eastern Congo in July 2022 has been rescued by Ugandan soldiers, International Christian Concern reported Oct. 21.
Katungu Mbaka Darke was taken around 9 p.m. during a deadly ADF attack on Lume village, the U.S.-based ministry said. Soldiers of the Uganda People's Defence Forces later freed her in Ituri province. ICC did not say when the rescue took place.
Darke told ICC that she suffered severe abuse in captivity and was pressured to give up Christianity, including being made to accept Islam and memorize verses from the Quran. She said she had two children with a rebel while held. “I just accepted, but in my heart, I knew Jesus was God,” she said.
Kimbi Tsobo, chief of Lume, confirmed the abduction to ICC and said her family had held a burial ceremony after she vanished. “We thank God that she has come back alive after all these years,” he said.
A church leader in Mutwanga told the ministry, “We thank God because the daughter we thought we had lost has returned alive.” Kasereka Mapathi Japhet, chief of the Rwenzori sector, condemned the abduction, ICC said.
The ADF is an armed group that has carried out repeated attacks on villages in eastern Congo. Watchman News has not independently confirmed the details of this report.
