Four more people were killed on Thursday as fierce fighting between March 23 Movement (M23) rebels and soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC), supported by coalition forces, continued in Kamanyola, Ngweshe Chiefdom, Walungu Territory, South Kivu Province.
According to local residents, the victims died in the Rubumba area on the outskirts of Kamanyola town. On Friday afternoon, M23 political spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka issued a statement naming the deceased as; Ivone Fulwa, 25; Adeline Barebwa, 3; Richelie Barebwa, 11; and Cikuru Lutwamungu.
Kanyuka added that Sifa M’buhendwa, 23, and Emmanuel Barebwa, 37, were injured. Kanyuka says the victims were hit when two bombs, allegedly fired from Burundi at around 5:30 p.m., struck Rubumba.
He also accused coalition forces aligned with the Kinshasa government of continuing relentless attacks on densely populated areas in North and South Kivu, using fighter jets, drones, and heavy artillery. He said the escalation of violence is spreading terror among civilians, worsening the provisional death toll, and destroying numerous homes.
“On Friday, December 5, 2025, the coalition forces of the Kinshasa regime continued their relentless attacks against densely populated areas in North Kivu and South Kivu, using fighter jets, drones, and heavy artillery,” Kanyuka said in his statement. “This unacceptable escalation continues to sow terror among civilian populations. It must be emphasized that the provisional toll continues to worsen: numerous homes have been destroyed, and women and children have tragically lost their lives. Furthermore, two bombs originating from Burundian territory, on December 4, 2025, at 5:30 p.m., struck the Rubumba neighborhood in Kamanyola, killing four people and seriously injuring two.”
On Friday afternoon, M23 president Bertrand Bisimwa also released a statement accusing FARDC, the Burundian army, and coalition forces of bombing Kamanyola and Katogota with long-range cannons, causing civilian deaths and forcing people to flee toward Bukavu and Rwanda. A key telecommunication tower in Kamanyola was also bombed on this Friday.
“The AFC/M23 denounces and condemns the bombings of civilian targets in Kamanyola and Katogota by the Burundian Army from sites on Burundian territory where it has installed long-range cannons, causing deaths and the displacement of populations toward Bukavu and Rwanda,” Bisimwa said.
Neither FARDC nor the Burundian army has issued a response to the allegations.
Thursday’s fighting also left three pupils from Murhesa Primary School in Mudaka, Kabare Territory, South Kivu, injured, according to local sources.Images released by civil society leaders show bloodied students, some with leg or pelvic wounds, while others, panicked along with their teachers, hid under desks.
The injured were taken to a nearby health center for emergency care. On Wednesday, four civilians were killed and six others injured during intense fighting in Kamanyola.
Clashes were also reported on Friday along the Kamanyola–Katogota road and in Luvungi, despite the peace agreement signed the previous day between Rwanda and the DR Congo in the United States.
The agreement, signed in Washington under the auspices of U.S. President Donald Trump by DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame, aims to pacify eastern DRC through a ceasefire, the disarmament of armed groups such as the FDLR, the withdrawal of Rwandan troops, and the return of refugees.
M23 currently controls most of North and South Kivu, including the cities of Goma and Bukavu, as well as Goma International Airport and Kavumu Airport. Since the group’s resurgence in 2022 under the leadership of Bertrand Bisimwa and Emmanuel Sultan Makenga, the DRC government has repeatedly accused Rwanda of supporting the rebels, allegations both Rwanda and M23 deny.
The movement maintains that its fight is against corruption, xenophobia, and discrimination within the Congolese leadership.
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