Renewed fighting erupted on Sunday between the Democratic Republic of Congo’s army and M23 rebels near a heavily populated town in North Kivu province, the latest escalation in the ongoing insurgency gripping the region, both the army and M23 confirmed.
The M23, a rebel group predominantly composed of Tutsis, captured Kirumba, the economic center of Lubero territory, at the end of June. The group also seized the neighboring town of Kanyabayonga around the same period.
According to M23 spokesman Willy Ngoma, government forces launched an attack on multiple rebel positions around Kirumba early Sunday morning, and clashes were ongoing throughout the day.
The Congolese army reported similar confrontations in the nearby village of Kikuvo, located approximately 12 kilometers from Kirumba.
The M23 has been reigniting its insurgency in Congo’s eastern region since 2022, further destabilizing a part of the country already beset by armed militias. The rebels’ resurgence has drawn accusations from Congo, the United Nations, the United States, and other Western nations, which allege that Rwanda is backing the group. Rwanda has consistently denied these allegations, leading to a significant deterioration in relations between the two neighboring countries.
Despite repeated efforts to broker peace, military campaigns to suppress the rebels have intensified in recent months, as ceasefires repeatedly collapse. The latest ceasefire was agreed upon at the end of July and was supposed to take effect on August 4.
The ongoing conflict has driven more than 1.7 million people from their homes in North Kivu alone, contributing to a record-breaking 7.2 million displaced persons across the country, according to U.N. estimates. Towns like Kirumba and Kanyabayonga are now housing thousands of these displaced individuals, compounding the humanitarian crisis in the region.
