Congo: Albino Child Found Dead In Occult-Related Killing

The headless and legless body of a five-year-old albino boy has been found in Eastern DR Congo's South Kivu province, officials said Thursday, after a suspected occult killing.

According to local government official Archimede Karhebwa, the boy was found on Wednesday in the Kalehe district of South Kivu, a province bordering Rwanda and Burundi.

He stated that the boy's body was discovered with his head and legs missing.

According to Juvenal Lushule, who works for a South Kivu albino association, 18 albinos have been slain in similar circumstances in the province since 2009.

According to Lushule, ten albino graves were also desecrated during that period, and there were 22 kidnapping attempts.

Albinos in the DRC, like in other African countries, are sometimes targeted because it is believed that their body parts can be utilized in magical rituals to bring fame and prosperity.

Albinism is a genetic condition that affects hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, particularly in Africa, and is caused by a lack of melanin, the pigment that colours skin, hair, and eyes.