Officials reported that a soldier in northeastern Congo opened fire on family members and others who had buried his son before he could return home to attend the ceremony, killing 13 people, including 10 children.

According to Lt. Jules Ngongo, an army spokesman for the Ituri province, where the terrible events occurred, the soldier first killed his wife, in-laws, and two of his children in the attack late on Saturday before turning his gun on other residents.

The soldier's identity was kept confidential.

The soldier returned from his duty station at another village in the province to discover his family and neighbors gathered in grief for his son, who had passed away on Thursday from natural causes, according to Baraka Muguwa Oscar, the village chief.

“This soldier did not like the fact that his son … was buried without his approval and in his absence,” Oscar said.

The soldier, a member of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or FARDC, fled the scene after the attack and was tracked down by members of the Congolese army.

“No matter what the case, the time or the circumstances, you can’t take a person’s life. This is an act of indiscipline that will be dealt with by the courts,” according to Ngongo, the army spokesperson.

More than 120 groups have been engaged in armed conflict in the eastern Congo for decades as they fight for territories, valuable mineral resources, and power. Other groups are attempting to protect their villages. The United Nations issued a warning earlier this week about an increase in violence in the nation's northeast.