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Endangered gorillas eaten by rebel troops

Rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have killed and eaten two silverback mountain gorillas, reports the Independent on Thursday, citing conservationists, who fear that more of the endangered animals may have been slaughtered in the lawless region.

Only about 700 mountain gorillas remain in the world, 380 of them spread across a range of volcanic mountains straddling the borders of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda, says the report.

One dismembered gorilla corpse was found on Tuesday in a pit latrine in Congo’s Virunga National Park, a few hundred yards from a park patrol post at Bikenge that was abandoned because of rebel attacks, according to the Africa Conservation Fund, which is based in London. Another silverback was killed in the same area on 5 January, said the group, quoting conservationists in the field.

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photo by Schacon