The death toll in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen to 110 as of Sunday, as rebels continue to attack the region.

Eight additional deaths were reported over the weekend, spurring a protest Sunday, according to Agence France-Presse. People took to the streets of Beni, where the eight were killed, but the police fired shots into the air to disperse the crowd in front of city hall.

President Joseph Kabila visited the region days ago when 14 others were also killed by the Allied Democratic Forces and National Army for the Liberation of Uganda. The Muslim rebels are using machetes to kill their victims, and officials in the country are looking for a stronger United Nations presence to help stop the slaughter.

Mayor Bwanakawa Nyonyi has said there is nothing peaceful about his area anymore.

DR of Congo is Africa's largest copper producer, but is also rich in tin ore, gold and coltan, which is used in smart phones and laptops, according to Bloomberg.

The country has struggled for almost 20 years against attacks. Due to the region's remote hills and forests, the residents are easy prey and it is hard for the army to hunt out the suspected assailants. The ongoing battle has claimed almost 5 million lives in eastern Congo, though many are from starvation and disease, according to the Washington Post.

An effort heavily funded by the U.S. continues to provide support in the region, but other relief efforts are having trouble raising funds. The global citizens are weary of the battle, ongoing since 1998, and are distracted by the newer violent upheavals that have occurred in other regions like Syria, South Sudan, Iraq and Hong Kong.

In fact, things are so bad in Congo that some have said that the time when the region was a colony of Belgium was better than the violence that has followed with freedom. Since becoming independent, the country has seen three disappointing leaders take over and a seemingly unending record of violence.

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