M23 conflict worsens humanitarian and security crisis in eastern DRC

The administrator of Fizi territory, Sammy Badibanga Kalonji, warned that fighting between AFC/M23 allies and Red Tabara forces, backed by the FARDC, has caused massive displacement in Minembwe Centre. He says the population is being used as a human shield and alleged Rwandan drone strikes have bombed the town's general hospital, homes and farms, deepening the humanitarian emergency. Since 16 June, the FARDC recaptured four strategic neighbourhoods in Minembwe.

In Kalemie, mayor David Mukeba Mbombo blamed deserter soldiers from North‑ and South‑Kivu for a surge in armed robberies and shootings that have left civilians injured and a police officer dead, including an attack on a Chinese resident’s home. The mayor says the influx of armed men from Goma, Bukavu and Uvira has turned the city into a security nightmare, prompting calls for urgent provincial action.