Shock in Italy following the assassination of the ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo

ROME.- Great agitation caused today in Italy by the death of the Italian Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Luca Attanasio, 43, married and father of three daughters and an accompanying policeman, Vittorio Iacovacci, 30, during an attack in the east of the African country, on the border with Rwanda.

During the assault, which took place in an area which is usually the scene of guerrilla attacks, the driver also died and three people who were part of the group were abductedconfirmed the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Carried out with small arms, the attack was a kidnapping attempt, indicated the Corriere della Sera, which specified that the diplomat was traveling in a vehicle that was part of a caravan of Monusco, the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The news of his violent death had a strong impact in Italy, also because Attanasio was known for his dedication, “great professionalism and humanity”, as evidenced by the photos, in which he always seemed to be smiling, which he uploaded to his social networks. From the new Prime Minister, Mario Draghi, to other personalities and organizations expressed their “sincere condolences” for this brutal episode.

According to Italian media, local police sources said the ambassador and policeman were captured and taken to a jungle after a command of at least six people assaulted them and killed their driver. It was just as the police arrived at the scene that, during an exchange of gunfire, the two hostages died..

Although the authorship of the attack is not yet clear, a hypothesis indicates that the responsibility could lie with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda. But other alternatives are also used, as various armed groups tend to operate in this area of ​​the border. The possibility of a group of common criminals was also considered because, as underlined The imprint, around the world, it is well known that Italy, unlike many other Western countries, usually pays millionaire ransoms to free its compatriots alive. The Rome prosecutor’s office has already sent a special team of riflemen to Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to investigate the case.

MONUSCO, as the United Nations peacekeeping mission that was the target of the attack calls it, has been working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since July 2010, with more than 12,000 soldiers from around 20 countries. The majority of the troops come from India and Pakistan. True reflection that they work in a hot and more than dangerous area, Since the start of the mission, 93 MONUSCO soldiers have lost their lives.

The Congolese police were surprised by the episode and assured that they had not been informed of the visit of the Italian ambassador to the region of Virunga National Park – Famous for its gorillas, but now a powder keg – as he assured the agency DPA the general of the national police, Abba Van. Originally from Goma, the delegation was traveling to the town of Rutshuru, near the park, which houses a World Food Program (WFP) school program.

Born in 1977 in Limbiate, a town near Milan, in northern Italy, Attanasio was one of Italy’s youngest ambassadors. He graduated from the famous Bocconi University of Economics in Milan and after a master’s degree in international politics he entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2003. Last October won the Internazionale Nassiriya Peace Prize for his humanitarian commitment: With his wife, Zakia Seddiki, he founded Mama Sofia, an association of volunteers that helps women and children in need in Kinshasa.

The Community of Sant’Egidio – a Roman Catholic organization with a strong presence in Africa – recalled that Attanasio “was passionate” about a program with which they were treating AIDS patients on this continent, but that he “was also involved in d ‘other social emergencies’. “With him goes, in a painful and dramatic way, a sensitive man, committed to the common good. It is a serious loss for Italy, but also for Africa, a continent for which Attanasio spent a lot of energy with courage, confident of a better future, of development and of peace, ”he said. stated in a press release. “We embrace his family, his wife and his children, whom we have met, renewing our commitment to Africa and the pacification of crisis areas, marked by indiscriminate violence that does not save as many innocent lives, as in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, ”he concluded.

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