At least 18 people died on Friday in drone attacks attributed to insurgent groups against several villages located in the province of South Kivu, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), local authorities reported this Saturday.
The attacks took place on Friday in the territory of Fizi, and among the victims are “women, men and children,” according to statements collected by local media from the administrator of Fizi, Samy Badibanga, who attributed the action to the rebel group March 23 Movement (M23).
“Health and school infrastructure has been destroyed, and several students have seen their schools razed in the villages of Mulima, Kangouli and its surroundings,” Badibanga explained.
In addition to an unspecified number of injured, the bombings have also caused the displacement of the population to the cities of Baraka, Kananda, Mukera, Kichoula and Lumania.
These actions occur within the framework of intense fighting between the Congolese Army and the M23, supported by neighboring Rwanda, in that area of South Kivu.
#Congo (#DRC)
: Islamic State (#ISIS) raided Congolese Army (#FARDC) barracks in Haut-Uélé.
Militants used an RPG-7 with #Bulgaria-made
Arsenal OGi-7MA rocket, Type 80 machine guns and AKMS / Type 56-1 assault rifles. pic.twitter.com/GhTb723Ng9
— War Noir (@war_noir) July 4, 2026
The conflict escalated at the end of January 2025, when the M23 took control of Goma, capital of North Kivu province, and, weeks later, of Bukavu, capital of South Kivu, after fighting with the Congolese Army.
Since Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame signed a peace agreement on December 4 in Washington in the presence of their American counterpart, Donald Trump, who ratified the June 2025 pact (signed at the ministerial level), both parties have accused each other of violating it.
This agreement joins the mediation efforts sponsored by Qatar between the Congolese Government and the M23, which on November 15 signed a framework agreement in Doha.
The east of the DRC, rich in essential minerals for the technological industry, has been experiencing a conflict fueled by rebel groups and the Army since the 1990s, despite the deployment of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the DRC (Monusco).
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