M23 fighters seize key DR Congo town despite ceasefire bid

US interference could see South African troops in the DRC become M23 ‘hostages’

After several bloody battles in January, the Samidrc soldiers, provided by South Africa, Tanzania, and Malawi, are effectively prisoners of war by the rebels.

Civilian Deaths Growing as Cheap Drones Appear in Africa’s Untamed Skies

JOHANNESBURG—Death was raining from the sky on the terrified fighters from the M23 rebel group dug in on a hillside near the region of north Kivu in eastern Congo on a hazy November day in 2023. Their commander couldn’t work out why, suddenly, the missiles were so unerringly accurate. In the past, many had landed short, or overshot, the trenches sheltering his men. Now, however, he and other survivors spent their evenings collecting the bodies, …

Rwanda-backed rebels make gains in DR Congo’s mineral-rich east

M23’s success comes after a surprise meeting between the presidents of Congo and Rwanda in Qatar, where they pledged to ease tensions.

M23 Fighters Capture Another Town in Eastern Congo After Rwanda and DRC Leaders Call for Ceasefire

Rwanda-backed M23 fighters have seized another key town in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The rebel group entered the mining hub of Walikale on Wednesday. M23’s latest advance comes after Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame called for an immediate ceasefire in the eastern DRC, following peace talks in Doha mediated by Qatar’s government. But M23 leaders are not backing down. Corneille Nangaa: “They h…

Supported by Rwandan troops, the M23 group has been conducting a flash offensive in the provinces of North and South Kivu since January.