GOMA, Congo (Reuters) - Independence day fireworks sent terrified Congolese sprinting for cover Tuesday in fear that war had broken out again in their eastern city.
Officials had organised the display in Goma to highlight efforts to end more than a decade of conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo and to show a sign of normal life returning to the region, where a peace deal took hold in January.
But residents feared it was a raging gun battle.
"I hit the ground not knowing what was going on," said 23-year-old student Aminata Kavugho.
Around 5.4 million people have died as a result of Congo's 1998-2003 war and the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe, making it the world's deadliest conflict since World War II.
(c) Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
Last updated: 01 July 2009, 11:30
The links provided allow you to bookmark this page into your favourite social media website. For users with JavaScript disabled copy and paste the URL from the address bar into your chosen social bookmarking site.