Rebel Attacks in Eastern DRC Prompt Hundreds to Flee
According to the Uganda Red Cross Society, large numbers of people from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) fled to Uganda after attacks that the DRC’s military blamed on the March 23 Movement (M23) rebel group (Associated Press)
Armed Fighters Seize Two Villages in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Suspected M23 fighters seized at least two Congolese villages near the border with Uganda and Rwanda (Al Jazeera)
Clashes in Eastern DRC Kill Eleven People
Armed men triggered clashes that killed eleven people yesterday in the eastern city of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Reuters)
UNJHRO Claim Congolese Authorities Killed Local Human Rights Activist
The United Nations Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO) reported that Congolese soldiers tortured Cabral Yombo, a leader of a local human rights group, who later died from his injuries (Reuters)
Thirty-one Fighters Killed in DRC Over Two Days
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s army said they killed twenty-seven rebel fighters over the past two days, while four government soldiers were killed (Agence France-Presse)
EU Halts Funding for WHO Programs Operating in DRC
The European Union suspended funding to the World Health Organization’s programs in the Democratic Republic of Congo following revelations of WHO personnel sexually abusing Congolese civilians (Reuters)
Islamic State Claims Responsibility for Killing Sixteen in the Democratic Republic of Congo
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for an attack on a village that killed sixteen people in the eastern part of the country (Reuters)
Demonstrators in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Protest New Electoral Commission Chief
Supporters of opposition leader Martin Fayulu took to the streets in Kinshasa protesting the selection of Denis Kadima as the new head of the electoral commission and questioning Kadima’s independence (Al Jazeera)
Police used tear gas to break up clashes between protesters and counter-protesters (Reuters)
WHO Accused of Sexual Abuse and Exploitation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
An independent commission released a report yesterday stating that World Health Organization (WHO) staff were among the eighty-three international and local aid workers accused of perpetrating sexual abuse and exploitation during the 2018-20 Ebola outbreak in the DRC (BBC)
Democratic Republic of Congo, China in Talks Over Cobalt Mine Dispute
Democratic Republic of Congo’s state cobalt buyer and China’s largest cobalt refiner are in negotiations to address unsafe working conditions in the Kasulo mine (Reuters)
Attack in Democratic Republic of Congo Kills Thirty People
An attack in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed at least thirty people this past weekend, according to local and UN sources. Jihadis from the Allied Democratic Forces armed group were the suspected attackers (Agence France-Presse)
U.S. Special Forces Visit DRC, Explore Antiterrorism Unit
U.S. special operations forces traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo to weigh the possibility of establishing a local antiterrorism unit, U.S. and DRC officials said (Reuters)
Militants Kill Hostages in Eastern DRC
At least sixteen people were killed weeks after being taken hostage in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s east, according to military and local sources. The victims, including two women, had been held by members of the Allied Democratic Forces (Agence France-Presse)
Suspected Militants Kill At Least Sixteen in DRC
Suspected members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) killed at least sixteen people in a road ambush on Friday in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu Province (Associated Press)
Prosecutors Order Arrest of Former DRC Prime Minister
Prosecutors ordered the arrest of former Democratic Republic of Congo Prime Minister Matata Ponyo Mapon on accusations of misappropriating $140 million, according to two government sources (Reuters)
DRC Fighters Surrender in North Kivu Province
Around 140 militia fighters handed themselves over to authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu Province, making them the first to surrender since President Felix Tshisekedi implemented martial law in North Kivu and one other province in May (Reuters)
COVID-19 Overwhelming Hospitals in DRC Capital
Hospitals in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, are overwhelmed by a surge in COVID-19 cases, President Felix Tshisekedi said. The country has administered fewer than thirty thousand vaccine doses (Reuters)
Volcano Eruption in DRC Displaces Tens of Thousands
An eruption of the Mount Nyiragongo volcano near the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo displaced more than twenty-five thousand people and killed at least fifteen. Nyiragongo is one of the most active volcanoes in the world (Associated Press)
DRC Orders Military Control of Two Regions
The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, ordered the military to take control of two violence-plagued eastern provinces he said are under a “state of siege” (Agence France-Presse)
Separately, the country’s health minister declared an end to the DRC’s twelfth Ebola outbreak (Nation)
Democratic Republic of Congo Installs New Government
President Felix Tshisekedi strengthened his hold on power in the Democratic Republic of Congo after a new government was installed with relatively few holdovers from the previous administration. Many of the new cabinet members are under forty years old (Reuters)
Separately, ten people were killed and thirty-four were injured in fighting between ethnic communities in eastern Congo. The fighting broke out amidst protests against the UN peacekeeping mission (Reuters)
Military Operation Kills Thirty-Three in DRC
At least thirty-three people were killed in a military operation against an armed group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Five civilians, a soldier, and twenty-seven members of the Cooperation for the Development of Congo (CODECO) militia were killed in the operation in Ituri province (Agence France-Presse)
ICC Pays Reparations to Victims of War Crimes in the DRC
The International Criminal Court (ICC) will pay $30 million in total to the victims of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including sexual slavery, that it previously convicted rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda of committing in the Democratic Republic of Congo. More than one hundred thousand people could be eligible for compensation (Al Jazeera)
Separately, he Biden administration reimposed sanctions placed on Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler for aiding corruption in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Congolese and human rights groups called for the reversal of the sanction waiver signed by the Trump administration in a secret action in January (Al Jazeera)
DRC: Rwandan Rebels Killed Italian Ambassador
The Democratic Republic of Congo said it suspects that an exiled Rwandan Hutu militia killed Italy’s ambassador to the DRC and two others in an attack in North Kivu Province yesterday. Investigations are ongoing (East African)
Italy’s Ambassador to DRC Killed in Attack on UN Convoy
Italy’s ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo, his bodyguard, and a driver from the World Food Programme were killed in an attack on their convoy in the eastern part of the country (Reuters)
Overnight Raid Kills Ten in Democratic Republic of Congo
Ten people were killed in an attack attributed to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) on a village in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters)