KINSHASA - Tensions soared in Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday as hundreds of ruling party supporters stormed Kinshasa cathedral after authorities banned a planned Catholic church-backed rally against the rule of President Joseph Kabila. "We have come to take possession of Our Lady of the Congo Cathedral to take part in Sunday mass ... and defend the homeland," Papy Pungu, youth wing leader of the People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), told AFP, vowing to "spend the night here." - 'Provocation' -Witnesses said the arrival at the cathedral of the PPRD supporters, many wearing red berets, sowed panic in the capital's northern Lingwala municipality. - Dozens dead in clashes -Political tension in DR Congo has been mounting since September 2016, when clashes between youths and security forces left dozens of people dead in Kinshasa. But the plan fell through because of what the authorities called "logistical problems" in preparing the vote.

Source: Bangkok Post February 24, 2018 19:41 UTC