July 4 (Xinhua) — The killers of okapis, a mammal belonging to the giraffe family, in Epulu national park situated in the north-western parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) will be prosecuted in the international court for committing “crimes against humanity.”
This declaration was made on Monday in Kinshasa by the director general of the Congolese Institute of Conservation of Nature (ICCN) Guy Mbayina. The ICCN director expressed his anger after the massacre of 15 okapi by a group of militias, on June 24, 2012.
During a press conference held on Monday, Mbayina confirmed that it was the Morgan rebel fighters who massacred the okapis and also killed two game rangers during their macabre operation. The ICCN director said that those who perpetrated that heinous crime should be arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Elsewhere, the civil society in Orientale province where Epulu national park is situated, have urged the international community and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to invest more funds for the protection of okapis in Epulu national park. (Xinhua)
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