DAKAR, Senegal - Militiamen attacked a national park station in eastern Congo, killing one ranger and wounding another, park officials said Saturday.
So-called Mai Mai militiamen attacked a group of seven rangers in a government-controlled sector in the far north of Virunga National park for several hours Thursday night, the park said in a statement.
The assault took place north of Lake Edward around Mount Tshiaberimu, a region home to a critically endangered population of 18 eastern lowland gorillas.
"We are deeply saddened by the loss," said park director Emmanuel de Merode. "The rangers of Virunga are more determined than ever to protect the gorillas in our care and we will ensure that the law is brought to bear on the perpetrators of this attack."
Mai Mai militias are made up of impoverished local young men who wield spears and machetes and believe magic amulets can protect them from bullets. The militia have traditionally supported the government against Rwandan-backed rebels supported by Laurent Nkunda.
The park statement said rangers managed to captured one of the militiamen, who is being questioned.
Much of Virunga park is controlled by Nkunda's rebels, including a volcanic area just north of the provincial capital Goma that is home to some of the world's last remaining mountain gorillas.
