Gunmen attack airport in eastern Congo, leaving at least 6 dead in latest unrest to hit region

KINSHASA, Congo – Officials say at least six people are dead following an attack on the largest airport in eastern Congo.

Government spokesman Lambert Mende says that heavily armed gunmen broke into the Goma airport early Tuesday.

Mende said two Congolese soldiers were killed during the attack, and four assailants also died. He said that calm had return to the area, and that it was believed the unknown attackers were looking for things to steal.

Eastern Congo has been mired in violence since the aftermath of the 1994 genocide in neighboring Rwanda.

Scores of militias and rebels regularly attack civilians in the area, including armed groups that are believed to have crossed into Congo from neighboring Rwanda and Uganda.