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Rwandan security forces have killed 19 "terrorists" blamed for an attack that resulted in the deaths of 14 people, police said.

The initial attack on Friday was reportedly carried out by ethnic Hutu rebels in the north of the country.

Officials suspect that the rebels carried out the killings while searching for food.

The retaliatory attack took place near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, police said.

Armed attackers reportedly went on a rampage with knives, machetes and stones in Musanze district near the Volcanoes National Park, which is popular with tourists for its mountain gorilla sanctuary.

While the death toll was initially put at eight, authorities are now saying that 14 people were killed.

The area has been targeted by Rwandan Hutu rebels active within DR Congo in the past.

This includes the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) militia, whose leaders are accused of complicity in the 1994 genocide of ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

Rwandan police say they were able to track down some of the perpetrators.

"The security forces were able to follow these terrorists, to kill 19 of them and arrest five," the police said in a statement.

Tourism officials said that all visitors to the area were safe.