What are confirmed rumors or news of assassination PATRICE LUMUMBA?
Introduction
Several confirmed details about the assassination of Patrice Lumumba have emerged over the years.
Execution Details
Lumumba was executed by firing squad on January 17, 1961, in Katanga province, within hours of his arrival there.
The execution took place in the presence of Katangan ministers and was carried out by Katangan gendarmes or police officers, with Belgian officials also present.
Two of Lumumba’s associates, Joseph Okito and Maurice Mpolo, were executed alongside him.
Cover-up and Disposal of Remains
After the execution, the bodies were initially thrown into shallow graves.
Later, a Belgian police officer led a group that exhumed the bodies, dismembered them, and dissolved the remains in sulfuric acid.
Any remaining parts were doused with gasoline and set on fire.
A Belgian police commissioner, Gerard Soete, kept one of Lumumba’s fingers and some gold-capped teeth as gruesome souvenirs.
Involvement of Foreign Powers
The CIA had plans to assassinate Lumumba, including a plot involving poisoned toothpaste, though they did not directly carry out the execution.
Belgian authorities were involved in the events leading to Lumumba’s death, with Belgian officers present at the execution.
The United States, through the CIA, played a role in the events leading to Lumumba’s transfer to Katanga, where he was killed.
Official Announcements and Investigations
The Katangan government withheld official announcement of Lumumba’s death until February 13, 1961, almost a month after the execution.
They falsely claimed that Lumumba had escaped and been killed by villagers.
Subsequent investigations, including those by the UN, Belgium, and the United States, have shed light on the circumstances of Lumumba’s death.
Recent Developments
In 2022, a gold-crowned tooth, believed to be Lumumba’s, was returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo and installed in a mausoleum in Kinshasa.
Conclusion
These confirmed details paint a picture of a complex, international conspiracy involving multiple actors in the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, which has continued to be a subject of historical inquiry and controversy for decades.
