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Zawya
5 days ago
- General
- Zawya
Democratic Republic (DR) Congo: Rwanda-backed M23 Executed Civilians in Goma
The Rwanda -backed M23 armed group summarily executed at least 21 civilians and most likely many more in Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on February 22-23, 2025, Human Rights Watch said today. The M23 has occupied Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, since January 27, 2025. Witnesses said that on the afternoon of February 22, at least three pickup trucks carrying dozens of M23 fighters arrived at various parts of Goma's Kasika neighborhood. They executed seven people west of Katindo military camp, a former Congolese army barracks. The bodies of 11 more people, including a boy, were found at a construction site near the camp. On February 23, the fighters rounded up people, including to forcibly recruit them, and killed three men as they tried to escape. 'The M23's brutal control over Goma has created a climate of fear among those perceived to be allied to the Congolese government,,' said Clémentine de Montjoye, senior Great Lakes researcher at Human Rights Watch. 'The mass killings don't seem to be actions by rogue fighters, but rather the M23 leadership's efforts to solidify their control by whatever means necessary.' The absence of reports of fighting between the warring parties and the nature of the wounds indicate that M23 fighters deliberately executed those in their custody, which are war crimes, Human Rights Watch said. Between February and May, Human Rights Watch remotely interviewed 22 people, including witnesses to the killings, victims' relatives, and medical workers, among others. Researchers reviewed media reports, and geolocated and analyzed photographs and videos sent directly by sources or found on social media. On May 23, Human Rights Watch contacted Lawrence Kanyuka, spokesperson for the M23's allied Alliance Fleuve Congo, but received no response. Human Rights Watch received credible information that the M23 was drawn to the Kasika neighborhood because of reports of crime and activity by the Congolese army and the ' Wazalendo,' militia groups aligned with the Congolese government. M23 fighters searched houses and local businesses for young men. 'They started shooting and took around 25 people from the streets,' said a resident of an area close to Katindo camp, whose 25-year-old relative was killed that day. Human Rights Watch confirmed that M23 fighters executed seven people on streets close to Katindo camp and received credible reports of dozens more killings. '[The M23] went into stores and shot people in the head on the Avenue du Commandant Belge,' said a witness. 'The bodies were then piled up in two places: 10 in one place and 15 in another.' Residents described seeing over a dozen bodies on Kasika Avenue. '[The M23] showed me the bodies of people on the ground and said: 'This is what we're going to do with you,'' said a woman whose relative was taken away. 'I saw 18 bodies; others were on other streets.' Eleven bodies were found at a construction site less than 100 meters from the camp, based on witness accounts and geolocated and verified videos and photographs. Human Rights Watch verified the identities of six victims, all civilians and neighborhood residents. The relative of a victim taken from their house said: 'The M23 walked off with him, and the next morning we found his body in the construction site with other bodies.' A relative and a neighbor of a 15-year-old boy said that the M23 took him and executed him, and dumped his body in the construction site with the others. Photographs and videos show several bullet holes and blood on the wall on the execution site, as well as items on the ground that appear to be bullet cases, indicating that some of the victims were shot there. The Independent Forensic Expert Group of the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims estimates less than 24 hours had passed since the people were killed and photographed, matching witness accounts. A photograph posted to Facebook at 10:13 p.m. local time on February 22, taken during daylight hours, indicates the victims were killed sometime before nightfall, at 6:40 p.m. on February 22. On February 22, M23 fighters shot three people on a street just west of Kasika. 'When we arrived, my friend and two others were still breathing,' said a friend of a victim. 'The M23 refused to let us approach them and fired into the ground. When [my friend] died, they agreed to let us take him to the morgue.' Human Rights Watch geolocated a video shared by a resident showing one of the bodies being loaded onto a truck on Mulongwe Avenue, west of the neighborhood. The witness said he saw six other bodies on that street. Human Rights Watch also geolocated and verified a video showing men rounded up by M23 fighters on February 23 near a sports field commonly known as 'terrain des scouts.' 'We saw the M23 take around 20 people and make them sit on the ground,' said a witness. 'They started intimidating them – they were youth from the neighborhood, but they accused them of being FARDC [Congolese army]. At least three people tried to run away but were shot dead.' An independent source corroborated that men trying to escape were killed, but could not verify the victims' identities. The video shows an M23 fighter with a red arm band, believed to belong to the military police unit. The detained men were driven away in a truck, according to a witness. A resident and an independent source said they believed the men were being forcibly recruited. Three medical workers said that over 50 bodies were collected from the Kasika area on February 22 and 23, which matches information provided by residents and others. Human Rights Watch verified the identities of 13 victims. Many of those killed had a gunshot wound to the head or chest, based on witness accounts. Commanders and combatants who directly ordered or carried out abuses should be held criminally accountable, Human Rights Watch said. Military commanders and civilian officials can also be held criminally liable for crimes committed by their subordinates if they knew or should have known of crimes being committed and failed to prevent or punish the crimes. The fighting in eastern Congo between the M23 and Rwandan forces against the Congolese military and allied armed groups has exposed civilians to serious crimes by all parties to the conflict, including summary killings, sexual violence, forced displacement, and pillage. In October 2024, the International Criminal Court prosecutor announced that his office would renew investigative efforts in Congo with a focus on crimes in North Kivu since January 2022. The court's investigation should include the executions of civilians in Goma by M23 fighters, Human Rights Watch said. 'The Rwandan government, as the direct supporter of the M23, may be complicit in the armed group's war crimes,' de Montjoye said. 'Concerned governments, including those attempting to broker peace deals between the warring parties, should press Rwanda to end its support and ensure that justice for serious crimes is a priority.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).
Zawya
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Zawya
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo): Rwanda-Backed M23 Target Journalists, Activists
The Rwanda-backed M23 armed group and the allied Alliance Fleuve Congo have threatened, detained, and attacked journalists, critics, and civil society activists since capturing Goma in January. Restoring a measure of normalcy to the M23 occupied cities of Goma and Bukavu will mean allowing journalists and activists to do their jobs without threats, violence, or worse. 4 The European Union, its member states, and other concerned governments should urgently adopt further targeted sanctions against the M23 and high-level Rwandan and Congolese officials responsible for serious abuses. The Rwanda -backed M23 armed group and the allied Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC) have threatened, detained, and attacked journalists, critics, and civil society activists since capturing Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in late January 2025, Human Rights Watch said today. The Alliance Fleuve Congo is a politico-military coalition that includes the M23. In North and South Kivu provinces, M23 fighters have raided homes, made death threats, and threatened reprisals, undermining independent media and the work of civil society groups. M23 fighters have also detained civil society leaders and committed summary executions, including killing a singer and activist at his home and five men doing forced labor. 'The Rwanda-backed M23 is harassing and attacking activists, journalists, and peaceful critics in areas the armed group controls in eastern Congo,' said Clémentine de Montjoye, senior Great Lakes researcher at Human Rights Watch. 'Restoring a measure of normalcy to the captured cities of Goma and Bukavu will mean allowing journalists and civil society activists to do their jobs without threats, violence, or worse.' Since late January, Human Rights Watch has interviewed over two dozen Congolese activists as well as domestic and foreign journalists in the cities of Goma, Kinshasa, and Bujumbura, and reviewed audio recordings of phone calls, screenshots of messages, and video and audio recordings of speeches given by AFC and M23 officials. Human Rights Watch received credible information that over 200 activists have sought protection support since the M23 began its offensive on Goma in January and later captured South Kivu's provincial capital, Bukavu, in February. The M23 and AFC authorities as well as the Rwandan government are obligated to abide by international humanitarian law in areas they occupy. They should permit civil society activists and journalists to work and move freely except for imperative reasons of security, and hold to account their personnel responsible for abuses. On March 5, Human Rights Watch emailed its preliminary findings to Rwandan authorities and asked for comment, but has received no replies at time of publication. After the M23 and Rwandan forces captured Goma on January 27, the AFC replaced the police and other national government institutions across the city. Since then, M23 fighters have beaten and summarily executed alleged supporters of the Congolese armed forces and its allies, as well as alleged criminals, and looted homes. A Goma resident said that a group of M23 fighters came to his home on January 29 and accused him of helping their enemies kill their 'friends' on the front line. 'They beat me with sticks on my back all day,' he said. 'I can't walk anymore. They beat me, attacked me, and looted my house.' On February 13, M23 fighters fatally shot the singer and activist Delphin Katembo Vinywasiki, known as Delcat Idengo, at his home in an apparently noncombat situation. On February 20, the AFC spokesperson, Lawrence Kanyuka, accused Idengo of being a member of the youth movement Lutte pour le Changement (Struggle for Change, or LUCHA) and told Human Rights Watch that the fighters killed him for wearing 'military insignia.' In a separate incident, an independent source said M23 fighters summarily executed a LUCHA activist along with four other men after they carried out forced labor for the armed group. The M23 has long used threats and intimidation to restrict the population's access to information and to control criticism. Journalists have already faced difficulties reporting on the situation in Goma. The Rwandan government has arrested Congolese civilians without evident legal basis. In February, after Rwandan authorities arrested a Congolese activist who had crossed into Rwanda, they handed him over to the M23 military intelligence in Goma, which detained him for seven days. Kanyuka confirmed that the activist was arrested in Rwanda at the M23's request and held in military intelligence facilities for 'being against our regime' and had 'produced a lot of criticism against us.' AFC and M23 officials have detained and threatened several Congolese activists. The Congolese armed forces and its allied armed groups have also been responsible for serious abuses. Amid the fighting in eastern Congo during 2024, several armed groups aligned with the Congolese army increased attacks on human rights defenders. Journalists reported that both the M23 and Congolese national authorities pressured them to publish only positive stories on their military engagements. The Congolese government also has threatened action against journalists who cover the country's conflict. On January 7, the president of the Communication and Broadcasting Board (Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel et de la communication, CSAC) announced that Radio France Internationale, France 24, and TV5Monde's Africa program faced suspension for reporting on 'alleged advances of terrorists.' Justice Minister Constant Mutamba warned that anyone, including journalists, who shares information about the M23 and Rwandan forces would face severe legal consequences, including possibly the death penalty. The parties to the armed conflict in eastern Congo, including Rwanda and the M23, and Congo and its allied armed groups, are bound by international humanitarian law, or the laws of war. Relevant law can be found in the Geneva Conventions of 1949, including Common Article 3, the Hague Regulations of 1907, and customary international law. The law of occupation concerning the protection of civilians applies to areas, including Goma and Bukavu, that Rwandan or M23 forces control. While occupation law permits occupying forces to impose security restrictions on civilians, it also requires them over time to restore and ensure public order and civil life for the occupied population. The European Union, its member states, and other concerned governments should urgently adopt further targeted sanctions against the M23 and high-level Rwandan and Congolese officials responsible for serious abuses. On February 20, the United States imposed financial and property sanctions on Gen. James Kabarebe, Rwanda's minister of state and former military commander, and on Kanyuka, the AFC spokesperson. Governments should also press Rwanda to ensure that civilians, including journalists and activists, have freedom of movement in M23-controlled territory, in accordance with international humanitarian law. The EU should also suspend its deal on minerals with Rwanda in light of its forces' involvement in abuses with the M23, and review military and security cooperation with Rwanda, including under the European Peace Facility. 'During this difficult time in M23-controlled cities, the local population needs access to essential information and reliable news,' de Montjoye said. 'Governments should press Rwanda to ensure that the M23 will allow journalists and activists to function without unnecessary restrictions that are putting civilians at greater risk.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).
Zawya
14-02-2025
- Politics
- Zawya
Democratic Republic of (DR) Congo: M23 Drives Displaced People from Goma Camps
The Rwanda -backed M23 armed group has unlawfully ordered tens of thousands of displaced people to leave the camps around Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Human Rights Watch said today. Since the M23 took control of Goma on January 27, 2025, many displaced people have returned to their home villages or have fled to Goma, where they have faced dire conditions and been with limited or no humanitarian aid. On February 9, the M23 told camp leaders and residents west of Goma, North Kivu's provincial capital, that they had 72 hours to leave. International humanitarian law, applicable to the armed conflict in eastern Congo, prohibits the forced displacement of civilians except for their security or for imperative military reasons. 'The M23's order to forcibly remove tens of thousands of displaced people from camps to areas with no support is both cruel and a possible war crime,' said Clémentine de Montjoye, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. 'Rwanda and other countries with influence over the M23 should press the armed group to immediately change course.' In February, Human Rights Watch spoke with 22 former camp residents, camp leaders, and witnesses to abuse, and analyzed satellite imagery showing dismantled camps north of Goma. Prior to the January offensive by the M23 and Rwandan forces on Goma, the city had over one million residents and over a half million displaced people, most in displacement sites north and west of the city. During the fighting, nearly 3,000 combatants and civilians were killed and thousands more injured, according to the United Nations. Two aid workers and several camp residents said that on February 9, the M23 had told people in Bulengo and Lushagala camps, west of Goma, which together were hosting over 100,000 people, to leave within 72 hours. Since the M23 gave the order, the Lushagala camp has been looted and humanitarian organizations have been unable to carry out their work there, an aid worker and a witness told Human Rights Watch. 'We tried to explain why we are still here,' said a camp resident who was at the meeting with the M23. 'The majority of us no longer have homes, some have disabilities and need support to travel, others have large families. We don't have food to sustain ourselves during the trip. But they [the M23] responded to all of our concerns by saying 'What is said is said. By Thursday, everyone should be gone.'' A man who fled the fighting in Goma in late January said: 'We know when the M23 arrive somewhere, they force everyone out and close the camps. They do that everywhere they go.' On February 12, a camp known as Lushagala extension was also dismantled. Human Rights Watch received photographs, videos, and a witness account on February 13 indicating the local population and camp residents had torn down shelters and medical infrastructure and some displaced people were leaving Goma. The witness said M23 officials and camp leaders were present and did not react as the camp was being dismantled. In late January, a person in the South Kivu town of Minova, west of Goma, said that the M23 had dismantled displacement camps and forced out the camp residents. The M23 told the residents they should not expect further aid and should return home. An aid worker said that in January, the M23 told camp leaders in the towns of Minova and Masisi that the camps should be closed and that aid agencies could only help any remaining people in the camps under specific conditions. Aid workers and displaced people said that none of the camps in Nyiragongo territory north of Goma exist anymore, and that the residents had either gone home or ended up in churches, schools, and host families nearby or in the city. On February 3, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that three displacement sites north of Goma, Don Bosco, Bushagara, and EP Mbogo, had been destroyed and abandoned and that over half of the displaced people were on the move toward their home areas, controlled by the M23. There were conflicting views on who dismantled the camps, although it seems the local population may have been responsible. Satellite imagery from January 31 analyzed by Human Rights Watch shows that people have abandoned virtually all the camps in Nyiragongo territory. Only debris is visible where shelters previously stood. Aid workers said that as of February 11, tens of thousands of people remained in some of the camps west of Goma, including many who initially fled as the M23 approached but then returned. They said other camps in the area had been abandoned, emptied, or destroyed, with 80 percent of the residents now living with local residents or in overcrowded sites in Goma or nearby. On February 10, the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), a political-military coalition that includes the M23 and other armed groups and political parties, said in a statement that 'internally displaced persons are voluntarily returning to their now-secured homes in liberated areas. The AFC/M23 fully supports and encourages this process but does not compel anyone to return without firm security guarantees.' On February 13, Human Rights Watch wrote to AFC coordinator Corneille Nangaa Yobeluo to seek information about the M23's orders for people to leave the camps and whether they were facilitating aid for displaced people in Goma and in their hometowns, but had not received a response at time of publication. The fighting in Goma involving the M23 and Rwandan forces against the Congolese military and allied militias and the subsequent looting of storage facilities have significantly interrupted activities by humanitarian groups, including those providing essential aid to displaced and vulnerable people across North and South Kivu provinces. Goma's airport has been closed since the M23 took control of the city, cutting off new supplies of critical aid. Many displaced people said they could not return to their home areas without sustained support for weeks or months from humanitarian groups because their fields had not been prepared, there was no other food support there, and their homes and healthcare infrastructure had been destroyed. Some expressed concern about unexploded munitions and the presence of armed men in their hometowns, saying it was not safe to return. The M23 and Rwandan forces controlling Goma should immediately ensure that civilians, including displaced people, are not unlawfully transferred from their displacement sites and are not denied access to items essential for their survival, including water, food, shelter, and medicine. The M23 and Rwandan forces should also facilitate safe passage to areas under control of Congolese forces for civilians who choose to leave the city. The UN, regional bodies, and donors should press the Rwandan government and the M23 to ensure the health and well-being of the population in territories they control, in accordance with international human rights and humanitarian law, Human Rights Watch said. They should urge all warring parties to facilitate access to humanitarian aid and ensure the free movement of humanitarian workers. 'Rwandan forces and the M23 should abide by international humanitarian law and cease the unlawful displacement of civilians,' de Montjoye said. 'Concerned governments should press all the parties to uphold the rights of displaced people and ensure that access to humanitarian aid is fully restored and protected.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).
