CONGO IN FLAMES! 18 Killed as Fresh Fighting Escalates in Eastern DR Congo
Eighteen people were killed on Friday, and several others injured as fierce fighting between the March 23 Movement rebels and a coalition of Twirwaneho and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) army and coalition of Wazalendo intensifies in Fizi Territory, South Kivu Province.
According to residents, the casualties occurred after a drone-dropped bomb struck Mulima Village in Basilocha Groupement during the morning hours. Fizi Territory Administrator, Samy Badibanga says on Saturday that the dead and injured included women and children. He also says that the explosion killed livestock and damaged a school in the area.
He says the fighting triggered a fresh wave of displacement, forcing residents to flee to the centres of Baraka, Kananda, Mukera, Kichoula, and Lumania.
On Friday, intense clashes were reported near Kaziba in the Mubugu, Kange, and Namubula highlands. On Saturday, the M23/AFC rebels and their Twirwaneho allies claimed to have captured Point Zero, a strategic hill in Fizi Territory that controls key routes linking the highland town of Minembwe, the Mwenga Highlands, and the lakeside town of Baraka along National Road No. 5.
M23/AFC says its armed campaign is aimed at addressing corruption, xenophobia, and discrimination against certain communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In early 2025, the movement launched a rapid offensive across eastern DRC, capturing several strategic towns and escalating concerns over a wider regional conflict.
About Post Author
