Civilians 'hacked to death' in volatile eastern DRC

Suspected militants have hacked 12 people to death with machetes in a village in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a region plagued by violence from armed groups for years, local sources said.

The armed men attacked the village of Masome in Ituri province on Friday morning, local civil society leader Gustave Kakani told the AFP news agency.

"The victims were women and men, cut up with machetes. Some bodies were decapitated, others were found tied up."

"The victims were subjected to atrocious torture before being executed," he added.

Kakani said it was too early to say who was responsible for Friday's gruesome attack

"Twelve bodies have been collected," confirmed Colonel Siro Simba, military administrator of Irumu territory.

"The perpetrators of this crime are bandits," he said.

READ MORE: CODECO militia 'kills' civilians, 'burns' over 300 homes in DRC

Theatre of violence

The Irumu territory in Ituri, where the attack occurred, is a regular theatre of violence attributed to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) group.

The ADF -- which Daesh claims as its Central African offshoot -- is among the most violent of more than 120 armed groups active in DRC's volatile east.

It has been accused of slaughtering thousands of DRC civilians and carrying out bomb attacks in neighbouring Uganda.

Much of eastern DRC has seen a spike in violence this year, frustrating residents who say the army and the United Nations peacekeeping mission, known as MONUSCO, are not doing enough to keep people safe.

READ MORE: More than a dozen people dead in eastern DRC violence