US EditionAt Least 200 Killed in Mine Collapse in Eastern Congo
- Reuters reported on Jan 30 that a collapse at the Rubaya coltan mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed more than 200 people, Lubumba Kambere Muyisa said.
- The site, worked by artisanal diggers for a few dollars a day, has been under AFC/M23 rebel group control since 2024, and officials say the ground gave way while people were inside pits.
- An adviser to the governor said confirmed dead reached at least 227, with some survivors rescued seriously injured and about 20 injured survivors treated in health facilities; victims included miners, children and market women.
- The United Nations says the rebels plundered Rubaya to fund their insurgency, accusing the government of Rwanda of backing AFC/M23, which denies this; AFC/M23 says its aim is to overthrow Kinshasa and protect the Congolese Tutsi minority.
- Rubaya supplies around 15% of the world's coltan, a feedstock for tantalum used in electronics and aerospace, drawing attention to safety at a site mined informally for low pay.
53 Articles
53 Articles
In the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, more than 200 people were killed during a landslide in a large Coltan mine. The area is controlled by the militia group M23.
According to local media, the collapse of the mine occurred last Wednesday, although the total number of victims remained unclear until Friday night.
The collapsed mine accounts for 15 percent of the world's coltan, which is used by mobile phone manufacturers.
The collapse of the Rubaya coltan mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed more than 200 people. The mine produces about 15 percent of the world's coltan, which is processed into tantalum, a heat-resistant metal used in cell phones and computers, among other things.
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