In Kibumba, Nyiragongo territory, North Kivu province, there have reportedly been new clashes between the March 23 Movement (M23) rebels and the Armed Forces of Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) soldiers and militia coalition.
The brawl reportedly began on Wednesday at around 7:30 am, according to locals. Later, Bertrand Bisimwa, president of M23, issued a statement confirming the conflict.
Bisimwa charged FARDC soldiers with breaking the cease-fire agreements made by the leaders of the East African Community.
“The Kinshasa government coalition is presently attacking our soldiers; the combat is still going on. They have taken over the positions in Kibumba that the ARC/M23 gave to the @EACRF this morning. We deplore these several EAC resolutions being broken, said Bisimwa.
In response to the most recent allegations of conflict, the DRC government has not yet issued a statement.
Following the deployment of the East African Community (EAC) regional force in several places, including Bunagana, Kiwanja, Kibumba, and Mweso, among others, there has been peace in the area for weeks.
In December 2022, M23 transferred control of its positions in Kibumba to the EAC regional army (Kenyan forces). The reason the rebels are staying in the area is still unknown, though.
In March 2023, M23 began a conflict with the DR Congo’s government, focusing on the North Kivu region. The DR Congo government claims that Rwanda is supporting M23, but both Rwanda and M23 vehemently refute this.
The rebels assert that they are fighting against corrupt, xenophobic, and discriminatory government in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
