Democratic Republic of the Congo: The army reports an attack on the official residence of the Deputy Prime Minister

The armed forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo announced that they had thwarted a coup attempt. Army spokesman Sylvain Ekeng said in a speech broadcast live on state television that Congolese and “foreign” fighters had participated in the coup attempt that morning. The defense and security forces could have immediately thwarted the attack on the presidential palace in the capital, Kinshasa. Ekeng said some of the coup plotters and their leader had been “put out of business,” without clarifying whether this meant the perpetrators would be arrested or killed.

Earlier on Sunday, unidentified assailants surrounded the residence of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy in Kinshasa. Kamerhi's spokesman said on the X platform that gunmen in military uniform tried to storm Vital Kamerhi's house at 4:30 a.m. local time. Two security forces and an attacker were killed in the ensuing clash. Kamerhi and his family were not injured. Security measures were tightened around the residence.

Camerhi was originally sentenced to twenty years in prison

Kamerhi is running for the position of Speaker of Parliament in the Central African country. His nomination was met with sharp criticism from parts of the ruling party. The 65-year-old is controversial: in 2020 he was sentenced to twenty years in prison for embezzling about 50 million euros. However, after two appeals, Kamerhe was acquitted in 2022. He has since become a member of the ruling party again and a close confidant of President Felix Tshisekedi.

Camerhi is a candidate for the position of President of the National Assembly in the elections that were supposed to be held on Saturday. However, it was postponed due to a dispute within the ruling party.