Kivu conflict

The Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including neighboring Ituri province, there are more than 120 different armed groups active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently, some of the most active rebel groups include the Allied Democratic Forces, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo, the March 23 Movement, and many local Mai Mai militias. In addition to rebel groups and the governmental FARDC troops, a number of national and international organizations have intervened militarily in the conflict, including the United Nations force known as MONUSCO, and an East African Community regional force.
Conflict began in 2004 in the eastern Congo as an armed conflict between the military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and the Hutu Power group Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It has broadly consisted of three phases, the third of which is an ongoing conflict. Prior to March 2009, the main combatant group against the FARDC was the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP). Following the cessation of hostilities between these two forces, rebel Tutsi forces, formerly under the command of Laurent Nkunda, became the dominant opposition to the government forces.
The United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) has played a large role in the conflict. With 21,000 soldiers in the force, the Kivu conflict constitutes the largest peacekeeping mission currently in operation. In total, 93 peacekeepers have died in the region, with 15 dying in a large-scale attack by the Allied Democratic Forces, in North Kivu in December 2017. The peacekeeping force seeks to prevent escalation of force in the conflict, and minimise human rights abuses like sexual assault and the use of child soldiers in the conflict.
CNDP was sympathetic to the Banyamulenge in Eastern Congo, an ethnic Tutsi group, and to the Tutsi-dominated government of neighboring Rwanda. It was opposed by the FDLR, by the FARDC, and by United Nations forces.
In July 2024, a United Nation Security Council-commissioned report uncovered extensive Rwandan military activities in Nyiragongo, Rutshuru, and Masisi territories. The report revealed that Rwanda conducted 3,000 to 4,000 operations alongside M23 rebels, exerting significant control over them, and by April 2024, Rwandan troop numbers matched or exceeded M23's 3,000 fighters. The report detailed systematic Rwandan Defense Force (RDF) incursions, heavy weapon use, troop transport, and human rights abuses, including child soldier recruitment. Rwandan intelligence officers forcibly conscripted children as young as 12 from refugee camps, deceiving them with false job promises. The report also noted FARDC's ties to armed groups like FDLR-FOCA and Wazalendo militias in the fight against M23. M23 are engaged in a wide range of abuses in the region: recruitment of child soldiers, violence against the civilian population, looting, illegal mining, and corruption.
Laurent Nkunda was an officer in the rebel Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD), Goma faction in the Second Congo War (1998–2002). The rebel group, backed by Rwanda, was seeking to overthrow then Congolese president Laurent-Désiré Kabila. In 2003, when that war officially ended, Nkunda joined the new integrated national army of the transitional government of Congo as a colonel and was promoted to general in 2004. He soon rejected the authority of the government and retreated with some of RCD-Goma troops to the Masisi forests in Nord Kivu.
Global Witness says that Western companies sourcing minerals were buying them from traders who finance both rebel and government troops. Minerals such as cassiterite, gold, or coltan, which is used for electronic equipment and cell phones, are an important export for the Congo. A UN resolution stated that anyone supporting illegal Congolese armed groups through illicit trade of natural resources should be subjected to sanctions including travel restrictions and an assets freeze. The extent of the problem is not known.
The FDLR counts among its number the original members of the Interahamwe that led the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Established as a breakaway faction from the Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR), the FDLR initially sought to transition from a rebel group to a political-military entity dedicated to protecting Rwandan Hutu refugees and their interests in prolonged exile. This transformation enabled the promotion of new officers and the recruitment of fighters from refugee populations in eastern Congo. Despite its presence in the region, analysts, including the International Crisis Group, have asserted that the FDLR is not strong enough to pose a direct threat to Rwanda's government. However, its continued existence has been used as justification for Rwandan military interventions and the activities of Rwanda-backed groups like the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) and its successor, the March 23 Movement (M23). Some experts, including political scientist Bob Kabamba of the University of Liège, have suggested that economic motives—such as access to Congo's vast mineral wealth—have played a significant role in Rwanda's involvement in eastern Congo, dating back to its participation in the First Congo War in 1996.
Efforts to disarm and repatriate the FDLR have been ongoing since 2002, involving initiatives by DRC, Rwanda, and the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC, later MONUSCO). On 31 March 2005, FDLR representatives in Rome declared their willingness to cease military action against Rwanda and return home. However, Amnesty International reported that FDLR commanders continued to resist repatriation, citing fears of imprisonment, political exclusion, and loss of influence. The United Nations Security Council urged the group to uphold its commitments, and by 2006, approximately 1,500 FDLR members had been repatriated under a formal program. In subsequent years, the FDLR's strength gradually declined. By 2007, Kinshasa and Kigali had launched the Nairobi Communiqué, an international framework for bilateral cooperation aimed at resolving the FDLR issue, building upon the earlier Kimia II operation led by the FARDC and MONUSCO. By 2014, the group's territorial control in North and South Kivu had significantly weakened, and its number of fighters had dwindled to an estimated 1,400–1,500. On 18 September, FDLR leader Sylvestre Mudacumura, who had been targeted by an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant since July 2012, was killed by the Congolese military. In December 2023, Colonel Ruvugayimikore, also known as Ruhinda, the head of the FDLR's CRAP unit and regarded as one of its most skilled fighters, was also killed under unclear circumstances. By the 2020s, many analysts argued that the FDLR no longer posed a significant direct threat to Rwanda. However, its presence has long been cited as a justification for foreign military interventions in eastern Congo.
In 2003, the peace procedure was already starting to unravel in North Kivu. Under the terms of the deal, all belligerents were to join a transitional government and merge their forces into one national army. However, it quickly became clear that not all parties were fully committed to peace. An early sign of this was the defection of three senior Rally for Congolese Democracy–Goma officers—among them Laurent Nkunda—who feared Kabila's administration would sideline them and sought to retain their authority. Nkunda was appointed as the group's commander in North Kivu but declined to attend his swearing-in in Kinshasa, citing security concerns. Analysts suggested Rwanda positioned Nkunda as a proxy to retain its control over the eastern DRC. Prior to this, in 2002, Nkunda had served as RCD-Goma's brigade commander in Kisangani, where the group was involved in a massacre that claimed the lives of over 160 civilians in May of that year. Despite these allegations, Nkunda was never investigated. In early 2003, he established the political movement Synergie pour la Paix et la Concorde, which was formally launched in Bukavu in December of that year, with its operational base set up in Goma.
Tensions escalated after the February 2004 arrest of Officer Joseph Kasongo in South Kivu for his alleged involvement in the assassination of President Laurent-Désiré Kabila. This event triggered armed clashes between the national army and RCD-Goma forces, culminating in a ten-day siege of Bukavu. During this period, RCD-Goma troops committed widespread human rights violations, including unlawful civilian deaths and sexual violence against women and children, with victims as young as three years old. Estimates from international humanitarian agencies suggested that as many as 80 people were killed in the fighting between 26 May and 6 June. Nkunda defended his actions by claiming that his forces were preventing genocide against the Banyamulenge community. However, the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) dismissed this justification, stating that all residents of Bukavu, including the Banyamulenge, had suffered from the violence. Reports from local sources suggested the presence of Rwandan military personnel assisting RCD-Goma forces, though Rwanda denied any involvement. On 9 June, government troops reclaimed control of Bukavu following the withdrawal of RCD-Goma forces into the Masisi forests. The retreat led to a split within Nkunda's army, with a faction led by Colonel Jules Mutebusi fleeing to Rwanda. Meanwhile, reports indicated that approximately 150,000 Kinyarwanda-speaking people fled from South Kivu to North Kivu, fearing reprisal attacks.
By December 2004, internal divisions within RCD-Goma deepened, particularly as local Hutu leaders denounced the manipulation of Banyarwanda identity and declared their support for the central government. This internal schism led North Kivu's Governor Eugène Serufuli to realign with Kinshasa.
In 2005, General James Kabarebe, Rwanda's Chief of Defence Staff, directed senior ex-RCD-Goma officers to ensure Nkunda's protection upon his planned return to the DRC. Operating from Kitchanga, the headquarters of the 83rd Brigade, Nkunda mobilized former RCD-Goma commanders to defect from the national army. This period coincided with the brassage program, an integration initiative requiring soldiers to undergo training before redeployment outside their original regions. Many ex-RCD-Goma troops, reluctant to leave the Kivus, defected to Nkunda's ranks. By the end of 2005, elements of the 82nd, 81st, and 83rd Brigades coalesced under his command. In response to Nkunda's growing influence, the government issued an arrest warrant against him on 7 September 2005. The first significant confrontation between his forces and the national army occurred in late 2005 in Rutshuru Territory. Lieutenant Colonel Shé Kasikila led efforts to recover weapons distributed to civilians by former RCD-Goma officials. However, his actions, along with his vocal opposition to Rwandan involvement in the DRC and uncovering mass graves containing the victims of massacres carried out by the Rwandan army and its Congolese allies during the First Congo War, provoked reprisals from Nkunda's forces, which launched an offensive and drove government troops out of Rutshuru.
In 2006, Nkunda expanded his network by integrating General Bosco Ntaganda, a former chief of staff of the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC), into his ranks. Ntaganda was soon appointed Chief of Staff of the newly established Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple (CNDP), formally launched on 26 July 2006. Although the country was set to hold national elections on 30 July, and Nkunda had vowed to respect the results—leading to a decisive victory for Kabila's coalition in the Kivus—he remained defiant. On 25 November, just a day before the Supreme Court confirmed Kabila's victory in the presidential runoff, the CNDP launched an attack on FARDC's 11th Brigade in Sake, killing at least 25 civilians and leading to further casualties in Kitchanga and Tongo groupement of Bwito Chiefdom. Mass graves were later discovered near Tingi, outside Sake. Unable to mount an effective defense, FARDC turned to MONUSCO peacekeepers for support. In response, the UN urged the Congolese government to engage in negotiations with Nkunda, prompting Interior and Security Minister General Denis Kalume to travel to eastern DRC to initiate talks. On 7 December, CNDP forces attacked FARDC positions in Nord Kivu, but with military backing from MONUSCO, FARDC managed to reclaim its positions, killing around 150 CNDP fighters. The violence forced approximately 12,000 Congolese civilians to flee to Kisoro District, Uganda. That same day, a rocket fired from the DRC struck Kisoro District, killing seven people.
In early 2007, the central DRC government attempted to reduce the threat posed by Nkunda by trying to integrate his troops further into the FARDC, the national armed forces, in what was called a 'mixage' process. However, this backfired and it now appears that from about January to August Nkunda controlled five brigades of troops rather than two. On 24 July 2007, the UN peacekeeping head Jean-Marie Guehenno stated, "Mr Nkunda's forces are the single most serious threat to stability in the DR Congo". However, by August 2007, the initiative had failed, exacerbating human rights violations, particularly against the Hutu population. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported 181 cases of rape in Mutanda, Rutshuru. Over 50 villages were looted, and more than 60 vehicles were ambushed. Units loyal to Nkunda, including the Bravo Brigade's 2nd Battalion under Lieutenant Colonel Innocent Zimulinda, were implicated in numerous atrocities, including massacres in Buramba and the assassination of Abbé Richard Bemeriki, the priest of Jomba parish church in Rutshuru. Soldiers of the Charlie Brigade were responsible for civilian killings in Rubaya, Masisi Territory. As mixage unraveled, on 5 September, after FARDC forces claimed they had killed 80 of Nkunda's fighters using a Mil Mi-24 helicopter gunship, Nkunda urged the government to re-engage in peace talks. That same month, Nkunda's men "raided ten secondary schools and four primary schools where they took the children by force in order to make them join their ranks". According to the United Nations, boys were turned into soldiers while girls were subjected to sexual slavery, in violation of international law. In the aftermath of the UN report, thousands of Congolese civilians fled their homes, seeking refuge in displacement camps. The situation was further complicated by the rise of competing militias, notably the Patriotes Résistants Congolais (PARECO). This group, composed of CNDP defectors and Hutu fighters, emerged as a strong adversary to CNDP, with its leadership accusing the national army of collaborating with opposing forces.
The government set a 15 October deadline for CNDP forces to begin disarming. When this deadline passed without compliance, Kabila ordered FARDC to prepare for a forced disarmament of CNDP. On 17 October, government forces moved towards Kitchanga, Nkunda's stronghold. As fighting intensified between Nkunda's forces and government-backed Mai-Mai fighters around Bunagana, thousands of civilians fled to Rutshuru, arriving several days later. There were separate reports of government troops engaging units under Nkunda around Bukima, near Bunagana, as well as some refugees fleeing across the border into Uganda. The number of people displaced by the fighting since the beginning of the year was estimated at over 370,000. In early November 2007, Nkunda's forces seized control of Nyanzale, located approximately 100 km (62 mi) north of Goma. Three nearby villages were also reported to have been captured, and the army's outpost was left unguarded. A government offensive in early December led to the 82nd Brigade taking Mushake, a town that overlooks an important road. However, Reuters reported that the town was taken by the FARDC's 14th integrated brigade. This came after MONUSCO announced it would provide artillery support to the FARDC during the offensive. At a regional conference in Addis Ababa, the United States, Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda committed to backing the Congolese government while refusing to support what they referred to as "negative forces", a term widely interpreted as a reference to Nkunda's forces. Nkunda stated on 14 December 2007 that he was open to peace talks. The government called such talks on 20 December to be held from 27 December to 5 January. These talks were then postponed to be held from 6–14 January 2008.
Nkunda's group attended the talks, but walked out on 10 January 2008, after an alleged attempted arrest of one of their members. They later returned to the talks. The talks' schedule was extended to last until 21 January, and then to 22 January as an agreement appeared to be within reach. It was further extended to 23 January over final disagreements regarding war crimes cases. The peace deal was signed on 23 January and included provisions for an immediate ceasefire, the phased withdrawal of all rebel forces in North Kivu, the resettlement of thousands of villagers, and immunity for Nkunda's forces.
The agreement encouraged FARDC and the United Nations to remove FDLR forces from Kivu. Dissatisfaction with progress and lack of resettlement of refugees caused the CNDP forces to declare war on the FDLR and hostilities to resume, including civilian atrocities. Neither the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda nor the Rwandan government took part in the talks, a fact which may hurt the stability of the agreement.
On 26 October, the CNDP captured the Rumangabo military base and Virunga National Park, using the park as a staging ground for further attacks. This happened after the peace agreement failed, leading to battles that displaced thousands of people. The park was valuable due to its location on the main road to Goma. On 27 October, riots broke out near the United Nations compound in Goma, with locals throwing Molotov cocktails and rocks, blaming the UN forces for not preventing the rebel advances. The FARDC also retreated in what was seen as a "major retreat" under the pressure from the CNDP. Attack helicopters and armored vehicles of MONUSCO were used in an effort to halt the advance of the rebels, who claim to be within 7 miles (11 kilometres) of Goma. Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for DRC Alan Doss explained the necessity of engaging the rebels, stating that "...[the UN] can't allow population centers to be threatened... [the UN] had to engage". On 28 October, rebels and combined government-MONUSCO troops battled between the Kibumba refugee camp and Rutshuru. Five rockets were fired at a convoy of MONUSCO vehicles protecting a road to the territorial capital of Rutshuru, hitting two armored personnel carriers. The APCs, which contained Indian Army troops, were relatively undamaged, though a Lieutenant Colonel and two other personnel were injured. Rebel forces later captured the town. Meanwhile, civilians continued to riot, at some points pelting retreating Congolese troops with rocks, though UN spokeswoman Sylvie van den Wildenberg stated that the UN has "reinforced [their] presence" in the region.
By 29 October, the CNDP had seized control of large areas of the Masisi and Rutshuru territories with minimal resistance. As the CNDP advanced, they began dismantling internally displaced persons (IDP) camps, such as those in Kasasa and Nyongera. The rebel forces, either directly or through supervision, oversaw the destruction of these shelters, forcing many civilians to flee once again. Despite the CNDP's military dominance, the group declared a unilateral ceasefire rather than pursuing an assault on Goma. However, this ceasefire was not reciprocated by the Congolese government, and hostilities between the CNDP, FARDC, and pro-government militias, including PARECO and various Mai-Mai groups, persisted. On that same day, a request by France for the European Union to deploy an additional 1,500 troops was rejected by various nations, making its realization highly improbable; however, the UN forces present vowed to prevent any takeovers of civilian areas. The United Nations Security Council issued a unanimous non-binding resolution condemning the recent rebel advances and demanding an end to them. Despite the ceasefire, World Vision workers had to flee to the Rwandan border to continue their work, while gunfire was still heard. The United States Department of State sent Jendayi Frazer, the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, as an envoy to the region.
On 30 October, the CNDP officially took control of Kiwanja, and Nkunda called for direct talks with the Congolese government, saying he would take Goma "if there is no ceasefire, no security, and no progress in the peace process". The next day, 31 October, the CNDP appointed Jules Simpenzwe as the new territorial administrator. Military experts later argued that the CNDP's main target in its late October offensive was Rutshuru, not Goma. On the same day, Nkunda announced plans to create a "humanitarian aid corridor", a no-fire zone where displaced people could return home with the approval of the United Nations task force in Congo. However, Human Rights Watch reported that the CNDP used this strategy to mobilize civilians, who later faced abduction, sexual violence, and extrajudicial killings. MONUC spokesman Kevin Kennedy stated that MONUC's forces were stretched thin trying to keep peace within and around the city. According to Anneke Van Woudenberg, more than 20 people were killed overnight in Goma alone. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice contacted Rwandan President Paul Kagame to discuss a long-term solution. Also, on 31 October, British Foreign Minister David Miliband and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner flew to the region, with the intention of stopping in Kinshasa, Goma, and possibly Kigali.
Between 4 and 5 November, Human Rights Watch estimated that CNDP forces executed at least 150 people in Kiwanja. Many of the victims had gunshot wounds to the head or injuries from machetes, spears, or clubs, indicating extrajudicial killings rather than casualties from combat. Among those killed were at least 14 children, 8 women, and 7 elderly people. On 6 November, rebels broke the ceasefire and took control of another town in eastern DRC during clashes with FARDC forces on the eve of a regional summit on the crisis. CNDP rebels captured the center of Nyanzale, a key military base in North Kivu, after FARDC retreated. In the weeks after the CNDP took Kiwanja and Rutshuru, CNDP fighters also raped at least 16 women and girls.
In November 2008, during the clashes around Goma, a UN source reported that Angolan troops were seen taking part in combat operations alongside government forces. Kinshasa repeatedly denied that foreign troops were on its soil — an assertion echoed by the UN mission, which has 17,000 blue-helmeted peacekeepers on the ground. There is "military cooperation" between Congo and Angola, and that "there are perhaps Angolan (military) instructors in country", according to the UN. Angola, a former Portuguese colony, sided with Kinshasa in the 1998–2003 Second Congo War that erupted when Democratic Republic of Congo was in a massive rebellion.
International diplomatic efforts, combined with pressure on both Kinshasa and Kigali, eventually led to negotiations between the DRC and Rwanda. These talks culminated in the signing of the Ihusi Agreement on 16 January 2009. Prior to this, the United Nations Group of Experts on the DRC had revealed that the conflict in the Kivus had evolved into a proxy war, with Kinshasa supporting Mai-Mai groups and the FDLR, while Kigali backed the CNDP. The Goma Conference on 23 January 2008, further raised Nkunda's profile, with his media presence straining relations with Rwanda. In January 2009, Ntaganda announced the removal of Nkunda as the leader of the CNDP, citing mismanagement. Nkunda, caught by surprise, was unable to resist this change. On 16 January 2009, Ntaganda publicly declared the CNDP's integration into the Congolese army during a ceremony in Goma, attended by both the Rwandan Defence Minister and the Congolese Interior and Security Minister. The stated goal of this Rwanda-DRC agreement was to initiate joint operations against the FDLR, but the immediate priority was the consolidation of CNDP control and its integration into the Congolese military. On January 22, 2009, Nkunda crossed into Rwanda at Kabuhanga, where he was arrested by Rwandan officers. His associates, including Makenga, were directed to proceed with the integration process. Following Nkunda's removal, Rwandan and Congolese forces launched Operation Umoja Wetu ("Our Unity"), deploying approximately 4,000 Rwandan troops into eastern DRC to combat the FDLR. Concurrently, former CNDP officers were integrated into the Congolese army, securing key positions within it, with guarantees they would not be stationed outside the Kivus.
On 23 March 2009, the Kinshasa government finalized agreements with the CNDP and other armed groups, officially integrating CNDP forces into the national military, resulting in the dissolution of the CNDP. However, the integration process was fraught with difficulties, as many CNDP officers retained significant control in the Kivus. Operation Umoja Wetu was marked by significant human rights abuses, with both government and former rebel forces committing atrocities. Between January and September 2009, Human Rights Watch reported over 1,400 civilian deaths, primarily women, children, and the elderly, often accompanied by widespread sexual violence. In the first nine months of 2009, health centers in North and South Kivu recorded over 7,500 cases of sexual violence, nearly double the previous year's numbers. The instability created by these events contributed to the emergence of new armed groups in the region. On 18 August, three Indian UN soldiers were killed by Mai-Mai rebels in a surprise attack at a MONUSCO base in Kirumba, Nord-Kivu. On 23 October, Mai-Mai rebels attacked a MONUSCO base in Rwindi (30 km or 19 mi north of Kirumba). UN troops killed 8 rebels in the battle.
Ntaganda emerged as a key figure in the post-integration period, securing the role of deputy commander in government operations against the FDLR. He leveraged this position to appoint former CNDP officers to strategic roles, particularly in the mineral-rich regions of Nyabibwe, Bisie, and Bibatama, expanding their influence over mining operations. The CNDP continued to manipulate the integration process, incorporating Rwandan personnel into the Congolese army, including individuals with no prior affiliation to the CNDP. Some CNDP factions also remained outside the integration framework, hedging their positions for future developments. By 2011, Ntaganda had consolidated substantial power, particularly after the incapacitation of General Dieudonné Amuli in a plane crash. His growing authority allowed him to oversee military operations and personnel appointments across the Kivus. The 23 March 2009 agreement would later serve as a reference point for future conflicts, particularly with the emergence of the March 23 Movement in 2012, a rebellion led by former CNDP officers who contested the terms of the integration and broader governance of the region.
In March 2009, the CNDP had signed a peace treaty with the government, in which it agreed to become a political party in exchange for the release of its imprisoned members. In April 2012, former National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) soldiers mutinied against the government. The mutineers formed a rebel group called the March 23 Movement (M23). Former CNDP commander Bosco Ntaganda, known as "the Terminator" is accused of founding the movement. On 4 April, it was reported that Ntaganda and 300 loyal troops defected from the DRC and clashed with government forces in the Rutshuru region north of Goma. Africa Confidential said on 25 May 2012 that "the revolt now seems to be as much about resisting an attempt by Kinshasa to disrupt CNDP networks in the restive Kivu provinces, a process of which Ntaganda may find himself a casualty."
On 20 November 2012, the M23 took control of Goma after the national army retreated westward. MONUSCO, the United Nations peacekeeping force, watched the takeover without intervening, stating that its mandate allowed it only to protect civilians. M23 withdrew from Goma in early December following negotiations with the government and regional powers.
On 24 February 2013, leaders of 11 African nations signed an agreement designed to bring peace to the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The M23 rebels were not represented in the deal's negotiations or at the signing. Following disagreements in the M23 about how to react to the peace agreements, M23 political coordinator Jean-Marie Runiga Lugerero, was sacked by its military chief Sultani Makenga. Makenga declared himself interim leader and clashes between those loyal to him and those loyal to Jean-Marie Runiga Lugerero, who is allied with Bosco Ntaganda, have killed ten men and two others were hospitalized.
In March 2013, the United Nations Security Council authorized the deployment of an intervention brigade within MONUSCO to carry out targeted offensive operations, with or without the Congolese national army, against armed groups that threaten peace in eastern DRC. It is the first peacekeeping unit tasked with carrying out offensive operations.
On 28 March 2013, faced with recurrent waves of conflict in eastern DRC threatening the overall stability and development of the country and wider Great Lakes region, the Security Council decided, by its Resolution 2098, to create a specialized "intervention brigade" for an initial period of one year and within the authorized MONUSCO troop ceiling of 19,815. It would consist of three infantry battalions, one artillery and one special force and reconnaissance company and operate under direct command of the MONUSCO Force Commander, with the responsibility of neutralizing armed groups and the objective of contributing to reducing the threat posed by armed groups to state authority and civilian security in eastern DRC and to make space for stabilization activities.
The council also decided that MONUSCO shall strengthen the presence of its military, police and civilian components in eastern DRC and reduce, to the fullest extent possible for the implementation of its mandate, its presence in areas not affected by conflict in particular Kinshasa and in western DRC.
The last batch of the Malawi troops committed to the MONUSCO Force Intervention Brigade arrived in Goma, North Kivu province, on 7 October 2013. They will be part of the 3000- strong force to which Tanzania and South Africa are the other two troop contributing countries.
Since the arrival of its first troops in June 2013, the Intervention Brigade has already gone into action resulting in the withdrawal of M23, 30 kilometres (19 mi) from its initial positions in Kanyaruchinya, on 31 August 2013.
The Intervention Brigade is now at its full strength with the arrival of the Malawi infantry battalion. Tanzania, South Africa and Malawi have been picked for the UN Stabilization Mission in DR Congo (MONUSCO) because of the wide experience they gained in other UN Peacekeeping missions. For instance, 95 percent of the Malawi troops have been already in peacekeeping missions in Kosovo, Liberia, Rwanda, Sudan, and they are well prepared to face any operational challenges.
In January 2015, it was reported that UN and Congo troops were preparing an offensive on FDLR in the Kivu region, while striking FNL-Nzabampema positions on Eastern Congo on 5 January 2015. Several days earlier an infiltration by an unknown rebel group from Eastern Congo to Burundi left 95 rebels and 2 Burundi soldiers dead.
On 13 January 2015, the Congolese military held a press conference announcing the destruction of four of the 20 militant factions operating in South Kivu. The Raïa Mutomboki armed group will undergo disarmament. A total of 39 rebels were killed and 24 captured since the start of the Sokola 2 operation in October 2014, 55 weapons and large quantities of ammunition were also seized. FARDC casualties amounted to 8 killed and 4 wounded.
On 25 January 2015, 85 Raïa Mutomboki rebels surrendered to the authorities in the town of Mubambiro, North Kivu; the former militants will be gradually integrated into FARDC. Earlier in January, Raïa Mutomboki, founder Nyanderema, approached the town of Luizi with a group of 9 fighters, announcing their abandonment of armed struggle. 24 rifles, 2 grenades and other military equipment was transferred to FARDC during the two incidents.
On 31 January, the DRC troops launched a campaign against the FDLR Hutu rebels. On 13 March 2015, a military spokesman announced that a total of 182 FDLR rebels were killed since the start of the January offensive. Large amounts of weaponry and ammunition were seized, as the army recaptured the towns of Kirumba Kagondo, Kahumiro, Kabwendo, Mugogo, Washing 1 and 2, Kisimba 1, 2 and 3, among other locales.
In January 2016, fighting broke out between the FDLR, ADF and Mai-Mai militias, which resulted in thousands fleeing to surrounding areas in North Kivu's Goma.
Ethnic conflict in Kivu has often involved the Congolese Tutsis known as Banyamulenge, a cattle herding group of Rwandan origin derided as outsiders, and other ethnic groups who consider themselves indigenous. Additionally, neighboring Burundi and Rwanda, who have a thorny relationship, are accused of being involved, with Rwanda accused of training Burundi rebels who have joined with Mai Mai against the Banyamulenge and the Banyamulenge is accused of harboring the RNC, a Rwandan opposition group supported by Burundi. In June 2017, the group, mostly based in South Kivu, called the National People's Coalition for the Sovereignty of Congo (CNPSC) led by William Yakutumba was formed and became the strongest rebel group in the east, even briefly capturing a few strategic towns. The rebel group is one of three alliances of various Mai-Mai militias and has been referred to as the Alliance of Article 64, a reference to Article 64 of the constitution, which says the people have an obligation to fight the efforts of those who seek to take power by force, in reference to President Kabila. Bembe warlord Yakutumba's Mai-Mai Yakutumba is the largest component of the CNPSC and has had friction with the Congolese Tutsis who often make up commanders in army units. In May 2019, Banyamulenge fighters killed a Banyindu traditional chief, Kawaza Nyakwana. Later in 2019, a coalition of militias from the Bembe, Bafuliru and Banyindu are estimated to have burnt more than 100, mostly Banyamulenge, villages and stole tens of thousands of cattle from the largely cattle-herding Banyamulenge. About 200,000 people fled their homes.
Clashes between Hutu militias and militias of other ethnic groups has also been prominent. In 2012, the Congolese army in its attempt to crush the Rwandan backed and Tutsi-dominated CNDP and M23 rebels, empowered and used Hutu groups such as the FDLR and a Hutu dominated Maï Maï Nyatura as proxies in its fight. The Nyatura and FDLR even arbitrarily executed up to 264 mostly Tembo civilians in 2012. In 2015, the army then launched an offensive against the FDLR militia. The FDLR and Nyatura were accused of killing Nande people and of burning their houses. The Nande-dominate UPDI militia, a Nande militia called Mai-Mai Mazembe and a militia dominated by Nyanga people, the "Nduma Defense of Congo" (NDC), also called Maï-Maï Sheka and led by Gédéon Kyungu Mutanga, are accused of attacking Hutus. In North Kivu, in 2017, an alliance of Mai-Mai groups called the National Movement of Revolutionaries (MNR) began attacks in June 2017 includes Nande Mai-Mai leaders from groups such as Corps du Christ and Mai-Mai Mazembe. Another alliance of Mai-Mai groups is CMC which brings together Hutu militia Nyatura and are active along the border between North Kivu and South Kivu. In September 2019, the army declared it had killed Sylvestre Mudacumura, head of the FDLR, and in November that year the army declared it had killed Juvenal Musabimana, who had led a splinter group of the FDLR.
Approximately 1.7 million were forced to flee their homes in the DR Congo in 2017 as a result of intensified fighting.
On 27 September 2017, fighting erupted in Uvira as anti-government rebels of the CNPSC attempted to capture the city. This was part of an offensive launched in June of the same year.
On 7 December 2017, an attack orchestrated by the Allied Democratic Forces on a UN base in Semuliki in the North Kivu region resulted in the death of at least 15 UN peacekeepers from the MONUSCO mission. This attack drew international criticism, with UN Secretary-General António Guterres describing the incident, the worst altercation involving peacekeepers in recent history, as a "war crime". The assault, in terms of fatalities, was the most severe suffered by peacekeepers since an ambush in Somalia in 1993. The peacekeeping regiment that came under attack was composed of troops from Tanzania. In addition to the peacekeepers, five soldiers from the FARDC were killed in the attack. Analysts felt that the size and scale of the attack was unprecedented, but that it represented another step in the conflict which has been prevalent in the region for many years. The motivation for the attack was unknown, but it was expected to further destabilise the region. The Congolese forces claimed that the Islamist ADF lost 72 militants in the attack, raising the total number of fatalities in excess of 90.
During 2018, ADF carried out numerous attacks to Beni, inflicting high casualties to civilians and government soldiers:
In addition, on 16 December 2018, Maï-Maï militiamen attacked the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) warehouse in Beni ahead of 23 December election, security forces repel attackers without suffering casualties. According to the Congo Research Group (a study project at New York University), as of 2018, 134 armed groups are active in North and South Kivu.
On 31 October 2019, the Congolese army launched a large scale offensive against the ADF in the Beni Territory of the North Kivu Province. According to spokesman General Leon Richard Kasonga, "The DRC armed forces launched large-scale operations overnight Wednesday to eradicate all domestic and foreign armed groups that plague the east of the country and destabilize the Great Lakes region." The operation is being carried out by the FARDC without any foreign support. The focus is primarily on the ADF but also other armed groups are being targeted.
On 13 January 2020, the Congolese army raided ADF's headquarters camp, nicknamed "Madina", which is located near Beni. 30 Congolese soldiers were killed and 70 were wounded in the intense battle with ADF. 40 ADF insurgents were also reported killed, including five top commanders. The Congolese army nevertheless captures the camp, but fails to apprehend the target of the raid, ADF leader Musa Baluku.
On 26 May 2020, at least 40 civilians were killed with machetes by the ADF in Ituri province.
On 16 September 2020, the DRC and 70 armed groups active in South Kivu agreed to cease hostilities.
On 20 October 2020, more than 1,300 prisoners escaped from a jail in Beni after an attack claimed by the ISCAP (Islamic State's Central Africa Province).
On 26 October 2020, The Congolese armed forces took control of the headquarters of Burundi rebel group National Forces of Liberation (NFL) after three days of intense fighting. The army also said they fought some members of the National Resistance Council for Democracy (NRCD). Troops killed 27 rebels, seizing arms and ammunition, while three soldiers died in the fighting, with another four wounded. Now the rebels are fleeing toward the forests of Muranvia, Nyaburunda and Kashongo as well as the Nyanzale Rudaga valley.
On 31 December 2020, Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) massacred 25 civilians in the village of Tingwe. On 1 January 2021, the village of Loselose was recaptured by DRC after a battle between Congolese army, supported by UN peacekeepers and ADF. Two Congolese soldiers and 14 Islamist militants were killed, seven Congolese soldiers were wounded.
On 4 January 2021, ADF attacked villages of Tingwe, Mwenda and Nzenga and killed 25 civilians and kidnapped several others. DRC authorities also discovered 21 civilian bodies "in a state of decomposition" in Loselose and Loulo.
On 4 February 2021, ISIS operatives exchanged fire with Congolese soldiers in the Rwenzori region, on the border between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. Three soldiers were killed and several others were wounded. The other soldiers fled. ISIS operatives seized vehicles, weapons and ammunition.
On 22 February 2021, the Italian ambassador to DR Congo Luca Attanasio, an Italian law enforcement official and a driver were killed in an attack on a UN convoy near the town of Kanyamahoro, 16 kilometers north of Goma.
On 26 February 2021, IS operatives killed at least 35 Congolese soldiers and wounded many more after a Congolese army force approached IS positions in Losilosi, in the Beni region.
On 6 March 2021, IS militants attacked Congolese forces in a village in the Irumu region. During the attack, at least 7 soldiers were killed and the rest fled. IS operative seized weapons and ammunition.
On 31 March 2021, ADF militants linked to ISIS, massacred 23 civilians after attacking a village in the Beni region.
On 9 April 2021, two civilians trucks transporting Christian civilians were targeted by ISIL gunfire southeast of Beni. 5 of the passengers were killed. A Congolese soldier was also shot dead in the area on the same day.
On 23 April 2021, Congolese army camps were targeted by ISCAP militants in the Oicha region. One Congolese soldier was killed in the attacks.
On 30 April 2021, president Felix Tshisekedi declared a "state of siege" over the province of North Kivu that went into effect on 6 May. The state of siege will last for 30 days in which the province will be under military rule.
On 5 May 2021, the FARDC attacked and captured the village of Nyabiondo from APCLS. During the fighting a woman was wounded.
On 24 May 2021, ISIS operatives attacked a Congolese army camp near Kanjabai Prison, in the Beni region, about 50 km west of the Congo-Uganda border. Two soldiers were killed in the exchange of fire. ISIS operatives set fire to the camp.
On 29 June 2021, two Congolese soldiers were killed after ISCAP attacked their positions in the Ituri region.
On 29 July 2021, ISCAP militants attack a convoy of Christian civilians on the Ituri-Beni highway, killing one civilians and destroying 6 vehicles.
On 9 August, ISIL forces took control of the villages of Mavivi and Malibungo in the Ituri region, killing at least one Congolese soldier and capturing 3 others.
On 13 September, ISCAP forces attacked a village in the Ituri region, burning down the homes of several Christians and executing at least one Congolese soldier.
From 28 March 2022, the M23 Movement launched a new offensive in North Kivu, allegedly with Rwandan and Ugandan support. The offensive resulted in the displacement of tens of thousands of refugees, while the rebels had been able to capture some territory by June.
Towns and villages on the list of combat activities were; Beni, Kanyabayonga, Rutshuru, Rumangabo, Goma, Walikale, Bannyahe, Rubavu, Sake, Masisi and Bunagana. War broke out in other areas like Nyagatare, Butare, Bukavu, Fizi and Uvira. M23 has to form a governing alliance with the fighting parties. General S. Makenga was the military commander of M23. The number of refugees has doubled, the first groups of refugees have not been resettled.
On 27 January 2025, M23 claimed to have captured Goma.
In January 2025, the DRC severed diplomatic ties with Rwanda.
In July 2024, a United Nations Security Council-commissioned report revealed extensive Rwandan military activities in the Nyiragongo, Rutshuru, and Masisi territories. The report, based on authenticated photographs, drone footage, video recordings, eyewitness testimonies, and intelligence data, provided evidence that Rwanda's military had engaged in 3,000 to 4,000 interventions in collaboration with the M23 rebels, with Kigali exerting substantial influence over the group's actions. By April 2024, estimates suggested that Rwandan troop numbers equaled or even surpassed the 3,000 M23 fighters active in the area. The report further detailed systematic incursions by RDF, the use of artillery and armored vehicles equipped with radar and anti-aircraft missile systems, the deployment of troop transport trucks, and serious human rights violations, including the recruitment of child soldiers. According to the findings, children as young as 12 were forcibly conscripted from nearly all refugee camps in Rwanda by intelligence officers, often lured with false promises of payment or employment. These children were subsequently transferred to training camps in rebel-controlled areas, where they were supervised by Rwandan military personnel and M23 fighters. Beyond Rwanda's involvement, the report also raised concerns about the proximity between FARDC and other armed groups, including the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR-FOCA) and Wazalendo militias, both of which have aided government forces in combatting M23's occupation. M23's acts of violence include indiscriminate attacks on civilians, ransom payments, extrajudicial executions, sexual violence and the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. The conflict has already displaced nearly 7 million people.
Violence is widespread: "In Masisi 99.1% (897/905) and Kitchanga 50.4% (509/1020) of households reported at least one member subjected to violence. Displacement was reported by 39.0% of households (419/1075) in Kitchanga and 99.8% (903/905) in Masisi," one study found.
Many armed groups participating in the conflict have used children as active combatants. According to the report published [on 23 October 2013], almost 1,000 cases of child recruitment by armed groups were verified by MONUSCO between 1 January 2012 and 31 August 2013, predominantly in the district of North Kivu. The use of child soldiers in the Kivu conflict constitutes another example of the use of child soldiers in the DRC. The UN has asserted that some of the girls being used as belligerents are also subjected to sexual assault, and are treated as sex slaves.
The Kivu conflict has created chaos and disorder in the regions of North and South Kivu. MONUSCO believe that widespread sexual assault has been perpetrated against women in this regions by all sides of the conflict, something which the UNHCR has condemned. Incidents have involved the rape and sexual assault of both women and girls, included the incorporation of girls into militia forces as sex slaves. The most publicised example of sexual violence occurred in November 2012 in Minova. Having retreated to the town, FARDC troops conducted systematic rape against the women and girls over a period of three days. This resulted in widespread international condemnation, prompting the Army to begin an investigation in order to prosecute the perpetrators of the sexual assaults. In 2014, the "Minova Trial" was conducted. It was the largest rape tribunal in the nation's history. While the American Bar Association, which had an office in Goma, had identified more than 1,000 potential victims, the official list composed by the UN only had 126, of whom 56 testified at the trial. For reasons of safety, those testifying were forced to hide their faces by donning hoods. In the end, only a few junior officers were convicted. Sexual violence in the region has continued, but by 2015, funding had declined for sanctuaries for the women and protection.
The role of conflict minerals in the conflict is highly debated. Certain NGOs, like the Enough Project, say that the illegal exploitation of minerals is the main cause of the ongoing violence in the Kivus. A United Nations report supported this view. However, many academic and independent researchers (both Congolese and international) challenge this interpretation, arguing that while conflict minerals are undoubtedly one of the many causes of violence in the region, they are most likely not the most significant and impactful one.
The most prominent and prevalent conflict mineral procured in the Kivu districts is gold. Due to its high financial value, rival militias will attack one another for control of the mineral. An investigation into conflict minerals in relation to the Kivu conflict found that "gold is now, as of 2013, the most important conflict mineral in eastern Congo, with at least 12 tons worth roughly $500 million smuggled out of the east every year." These high financial revenues were identified as the primary incentives for the mining and capture of gold. To illustrate this, this study looked at one specific rebel group, determining that "The M23 rebel group has taken over a profitable part of the conflict gold trade in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo...It is using revenues from the illicit trade to benefit its leaders and supporters and fund its military campaign by building military alliances and networks with other armed groups that control territory around gold mines and by smuggling gold through Uganda and Burundi. M23 commander Sultani Makenga, who is also allegedly one of the rebels' main recruiters of child soldiers according to the U.N. Group of Experts on Congo, is at the center of the conflict gold efforts."
In 2021, the Transnational Institute published a report about the role of the arms trade in displacements, finding that "between 2012 and 2015 Bulgaria exported assault rifles, large-calibre artillery systems, light machine guns, hand-held under-barrel and mounted grenade launchers to the Democratic Republic of Congo's national police and military. [...] Bulgarian weapons were in use in North Kivu in 2017 coinciding with the forced displacement of 523,000 people." Highlighting the role of the military in human rights abuses, they write that FARDC soldiers in North Kivu "possessed Bulgarian-manufactured ARSENAL weaponry that had been exported to the DRC." The UN found the FARDC to have been responsible for at least 20% of the human rights violations it documented in this region.