Incident Summary:
09/23/2016: Assailants attacked an airport in Kananga, Kasai-Central, Democratic Republic of the Congo. At least 49 people, including 16 soldiers, six civilians, and 27 assailants, were killed and an unknown number of other people were injured between this attack and an incident in the same city the following day. No group claimed responsibility; however, sources attributed the attack to the Kamwina Nsapu Militia.
Overview
GTD ID:
201609230043
When:
2016-09-23
Country:
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Region:
Sub-Saharan Africa
Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:
Kasai-Central
City:
Kananga
What
Attack Information
| Type of Attack () |
Armed Assault |
| Successful Attack? () |
Yes |
Target Information ()
| Target Type: Airports and Aircraft |
|---|
| Name of Entity |
Unknown |
| Specific Description |
Airport |
| Nationality of Target |
Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Target Type: Military |
|---|
| Name of Entity |
Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) |
| Specific Description |
Soldiers |
| Nationality of Target |
Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Additional Information
| Hostages |
No |
| Ransom |
No |
| Property Damage |
Unknown |
| Extent of Property Damage |
Unknown |
| Value of Property Damage |
Unknown |
How
Weapon Information
| Type |
Sub-type |
| Firearms |
Unknown Gun Type |
| Melee |
Blunt Object |
| Weapon Details |
|---|
| Firearms and a club were used in the attack. |
Additional Information
| Suicide Attack? | No |
| Part of Multiple Incident? | No |
| Criterion 1 () |
Yes |
| Criterion 2 () |
Yes |
| Criterion 3 () |
Yes |
| Doubt Terrorism Proper () |
No |
| Additional Information |
Casualty numbers represent a division of the total number of those killed across incidents 201609220043 and 201609230043. Additionally, casualty numbers conflict across sources. Following GTD protocol, the most recent reliable estimates are reported here. |
Who
Perpetrator Statistics
| Number of Perpetrators |
Unknown |
| Number of Captured Perpetrators |
0 |
Casualty Information
| Total Number of Casualties |
24 Fatalities |
| Total Number of Fatalities |
24 |
| Number of U.S. Fatalities |
0 |
| Number of Perpetrator Fatalities |
13 |
| Total Number of Injured |
Unknown |
| Number of U.S. Injured |
0 |
| Number of Perpetrators Injured |
Unknown |
Sources
Sources
| "Death toll from militia violence in central Congo jumps to 49," Reuters UK, September 26, 2016. |
| "48 Killed in Clashes between Police, Militias in DR Congo," Latin American Herald Tribune, September 25, 2016. |
| "Clashes in central Congo kill at least 13," The Express Tribune, September 23, 2016. |
Criteria
Criteria 1
The act must be aimed at attaining a political, economic, religious, or social goal. In terms of economic goals, the exclusive pursuit of profit does not satisfy this criterion. It must involve the pursuit of more profound, systemic economic change.
Criterion 2
There must be evidence of an intention to coerce, intimidate, or convey some other message to a larger audience (or audiences) than the immediate victims. It is the act taken as a totality that is considered, irrespective if every individual involved in carrying out the act was aware of this intention. As long as any of the planners or decision-makers behind the attack intended to coerce, intimidate or publicize, the intentionality criterion is met.
Criterion 3
The action must be outside the context of legitimate warfare activities. That is, the act must be outside the parameters permitted by international humanitarian law (particularly the prohibition against deliberately targeting civilians or non-combatants.
Doubt Terrorism Proper
The existence of a "Yes" for "Doubt Terrorism Proper?" records reservation, in the eyes of GTD analysts, that the incident in question is truly terrorism. Such uncertainty, however, was not deemed to be sufficient to disqualify the incident from inclusion into the GTD. Furthermore, such a determination of doubt is subsequently coded by GTD analysts as conforming to one of four possible alternative designations: 1) Insurgency/Guerilla Action; 2) Internecine Conflict Action; 3) Mass Murder; or 4) Purely Criminal Act.
Alternate Designation
The determination of "yes" for "Doubt Terrorism Proper" by GTD analysts is coded as conforming to one of four possible alternative designations: 1) Insurgency/Guerilla Action; 2) Internecine Conflict Action; 3) Mass Murder; or 4) Purely Criminal Act.
Successful Attack
Success of a terrorist strike is defined according to the tangible effects of the attack. For example, in a typical successful bombing, the bomb detonates and destroys property and/or kills individuals, whereas an unsuccessful bombing is one in which the bomb is discovered and defused or detonates early and kills the perpetrators. Success is not judged in terms of the larger goals of the perpetrators. For example, a bomb that exploded in a building would be counted as a success even if it did not, for example, succeed in bringing the building down or inducing government repression.
Type of Attack
This field captures the general method of attack and often reflects the broad class of tactics used. It consists of the following nine categories:
- Assassination
- Armed Assault
- Unarmed Assault
- Bombing/Explosion
- Hijacking
- Hostage taking (Barricade Incident)
- Hostage taking (Kidnapping)
- Facility / Infrastructure Attack
- Unknown
Target Information
This field captures the general type of target. It consists of the following 22 categories:
- Abortion Related
- Airports & Airlines
- Business
- Government (General)
- Government (Diplomatic)
- Educational Institution
- Food or Water Supply
- Journalists & Media
- Maritime (includes Ports and Maritime facilities)
- Military
- NGO
- Other
- Police
- Private Citizens & Property
- Religious Figures/Institutions
- Telecommunication
- Terrorists
- Tourists
- Transportation (other than aviation)
- Unknown
- Utilities
- Violent Political Parties
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