Gunmen kill eight and injure 18 in Rwanda

Unidentified gunmen killed eight people and injured 18 during an overnight attack in northern Rwanda near the border with DR Congo, police said Saturday.

The attack took place in Musanze district which attracts tourists because of its Volcanoes National Park and its mountain gorillas, they said. 

Six people were killed with machetes or knives and the others were shot dead, a police statement said.

"Security forces were quick to provide emergency services to the residents of the area and investigations are still ongoing to find these terrorists," it added. 

The area has repeatedly been targeted by Rwandan rebels operating from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

One such group is the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, created by Rwandan Hutu refugees in eastern DRC after the genocide of Tutsis by majority Hutus in Rwanda in 1994.

The last attack by rebels in this region happened in December and resulted in the deaths of two Rwandan soldiers.