Fighting has broken out between M23 rebels and government-aligned militia in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), ending a fragile ceasefire that had held for several weeks. The renewed violence on Sunday left 14 civilians wounded, according to local reports.
Residents in the North Kivu region, a long-standing conflict zone, reported that clashes erupted at around 5:00 am (0300 GMT) between heavily armed M23 rebels and the “Wazalendo” militia, which translates to “patriots” in Swahili. Health sources from the area confirmed that 14 civilians, including two teenagers, had sustained bullet wounds.
The ceasefire between the DR Congo army and the M23, a group allegedly backed by Rwanda, was brokered in early August through Angolan mediation efforts. However, peace talks between DR Congo’s government in Kinshasa and Rwandan authorities have since stalled. A new round of discussions is scheduled for next weekend in Luanda, Angola.
(Photo credit should read Junior D. Kannah/AFP/Getty Images)
Rwanda considers the presence of the Rwandan Hutu extremist group FDLR (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda) in eastern DR Congo a direct threat to its borders. The resurgence of M23 rebels, which is largely composed of Tutsi fighters, has seen the group seize large territories in the mineral-rich eastern DRC since launching an offensive in late 2021.
The ongoing violence in the region has led to a humanitarian crisis, with North Kivu particularly hard-hit by displacement and insecurity as various rebel factions and militias continue to clash.