Fierce fighting between the March 23 Movement (M23) rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) and coalition forces has forced civilians in parts of South Kivu province to flee to Rwanda since Tuesday, local sources have said.
The clashes, which erupted on Monday, have spread across several areas including Katogota–Luvungi, Kaziba–Haut Plateau, Tchivanga–Hombo, Kasika–Mwenga, Muhumba, Ngando, Bulumbwa, Kashozi and Mucingwa.
According to local residents, at least 10 civilians were killed in gunfire and artillery exchanges. On Wednesday, fighting further escalated in Kamanyola, Tatogota, Lubarika and surrounding villages. Residents reported heavy shelling that destroyed homes, schools and a health facility.
The bombardment in Kamanyola forced hundreds of civilians to flee across the Bugarama border into Rwanda. Kamanyola is now effectively split: FARDC controls the southern sector, while M23 rebels hold the northern side up to the Rwandan border.
Locals say Rwanda authorized the entry of Congolese civilians seeking asylum by midday Wednesday. Educational, social and economic activities across the Ruzizi Plain have come to a standstill, and several villages have been left in ashes.
M23 political spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka confirmed the fierce fighting in a statement released Wednesday morning. He accused FARDC and its coalition partners of using fighter jets, combat drones and heavy artillery to “indiscriminately strike civilian populations in North and South Kivu,” calling the situation “a true apocalypse.” Kanyuka described the bombings as “war crimes and crimes against humanity,” asserting that M23 forces were acting in self-defense.
“The relentless attacks by the combined forces of the Kinshasa regime,including FARDC, FDLR, MAI-MAI Wazalendo, mercenaries, Imbonerakure, and the Burundian National Defense Forces, against civilian populations and across all front lines continue this Wednesday, December 3, 2025, with unrelenting brutality… These repeated, deliberate and irresponsible bombings constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The AFC/M23 defends and protects civilian populations,” Kanyuka stated. Speaking to our reporter by phone on Wednesday afternoon, Kanyuka said the fighting is taking place on all fronts, not only in Kamanyola and Katogota.
He alleged that FARDC and its coalition forces have collaborated with the Burundian National Defense Force to fire rockets from inside Burundi toward M23 positions and civilian homes in South Kivu. He further claimed that while M23 remains open to dialogue, the government has chosen a military approach, sabotaging the peace process.
On Tuesday evening, FARDC spokesperson Major General Sylvain Ekenge Bomusa Efomi had issued a statement accusing M23 of launching the latest attacks and violating ceasefire commitments.
The surge in hostilities comes just hours before the expected ratification of a peace agreement between DRC President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Washington. The ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, December 4, 2025, at the White House, where U.S. President Donald Trump will host the two leaders for a trilateral meeting, accompanied only by their foreign ministers.
The formal signing will follow at the United States Institute of Peace, with eight heads of state and other institutional representatives, among them Angola, Burundi, Kenya, Qatar, Togo, Uganda, the United Arab Emirates and the African Union Commission Chairperson, attending as witnesses.
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 M23’s resurgence in 2022 under the leadership of Bertrand Bisimwa and Emmanuel Sultan Makenga, the DRC government has repeatedly accused Rwanda of backing the group, allegations consistently denied by both Rwanda and M23. The rebels maintain that their struggle is against corruption, xenophobia and discrimination within the Congolese leadership.
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