Congo rebels guilty of cannibalism, says UN

A United Nations investigation has confirmed systematic cannibalism, rape, torture and killing by rebels against civilians, including children, in the north-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The rebel groups accused of the atrocities include the Congolese Liberation Movement of Jean-Pierra Bemba, one of two insurgent movements promised a leading role in the government under a power-sharing agreement to end the country's war.

Rebels called their terror campaign "Operation Clean the Slate", said Patricia Tome, a spokeswoman for the UN.

In a preliminary report based on a six-day mission to the Ituri province, the investigators cited 117 executions, 65 cases of rape, including the rape of children, 82 kidnappings and 27 cases of torture in a four-day period last year.

"The testimony given was of cannibalism and forced cannibalism," including people made to eat members of their family, Ms Tome said.