KINSHASA, Congo - Human Rights Watch says at least 18 civilians were killed and 100 seriously wounded during election violence in Congo.
The report released Friday states that the majority of those killed were shot by incumbent President Joseph Kabila's Republican Guard in Kinshasa. The violence peaked last Saturday when tens of thousands of people descended on the airport to welcome home the country's leading opposition candidate, two day's before the voting began on Monday.
The rights group says soldiers opened fire into the crowd. The victims included a 27-year-old mother of five who was shot in the head and a 22-year-old who was shot while walking outside a manioc granary near the airport.
The group says others were killed in mob violence on Election Day and clashes between political parties.
