GOMA, DR Congo: US special operations forces have arrived in the east of the DR Congo to help in the fight against a feared jihadist militia enjoying “sanctuary” in the region’s nature parks, US and Congolese sources said Wednesday.

The office of President Felix Tshisekedi said Sunday that Kinshasa had authorised the deployment in support of the Congolese army against the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels.

The size of the contingent was unknown but around a dozen soldiers could be seen in official photos of a meeting Sunday between Tshisekedi and a delegation led by US Ambassador to Kinshasa Mike Hammer.

Congolese and US sources confirmed to an AFP correspondent in the region the presence of some of the soldiers at a base in the Virunga natural park known for its endangered mountain gorillas.

The presidency said at the weekend that the contingent would also support rangers in Garamba, which like Virunga has “become a sanctuary for terrorist forces”. The mission is set to last “several weeks” and will target the ADF, which the statement described as a “branch of Daech” — or the Islamic State group (IS).