DR Congo: Over 100,000 children displaced in South Kivu

By Beatrice Guarrera

More than 100,000 children have been displaced since December 1 as the conflict escalates in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

UNICEF said it is “deeply alarmed” by the rapid intensification of hostilities in South Kivu province.

At the end of his Angelus on Sunday, Pope Leo XIV expressed his “grave concern” over the renewed fighting in the east of the country.

Rapid displacement

“Since December 1,” UNICEF said, “intense fighting has displaced more than 500,000 people,” including over 100,000 children in South Kivu alone.

Many families have fled both within the DRC and across the border into Burundi and Rwanda.

“As violence spreads, displacement is expected to rise further,” the UN agency warned.

Since December 2, there have been hundreds of casualties, including four students killed.

Other violations affecting children include six students injured and attacks on at least seven schools, with classrooms damaged or destroyed.

Many people fleeing the violence have crossed into Burundi, including “more than 50,000 new arrivals between December 6 and 11 alone,” almost half of them minors.

Children, UNICEF concluded, “should never pay the price of conflict.”

M23 advance continues in South Kivu

The M23 rebels’ offensive in South Kivu is continuing.

After entering the city of Uvira last week without meeting resistance from government forces—according to witnesses—the fighters reportedly also captured the town of Makobola and the village of Kasekezi, following heavy clashes with the pro-government Wazalendo militias.

Sources cited by the Congolese outlet Actualité report that the rebels—accused of being backed by Rwanda—attacked Wazalendo positions in Kasekezi, about three kilometers from Makobola, and spent the night there.

Control of Makobola could now allow the rebels to push toward the provinces of Maniema and Tanganyika, via National Road 5 and Lake Tanganyika.

Regional tensions

The capture of Uvira, near the Burundi border, has also reignited regional tensions.

Rwanda has denied financing the M23 and blamed Congolese and Burundian forces for the renewed fighting.

On Saturday, however, Patrick Busu Bwa Ngwi—presented as the South Kivu governor appointed by the M23—said that all Burundian forces deployed in the area should “leave the territory and go back home in peace.”

The M23 also claimed it is holding “several hundred Burundian soldiers captured during the fighting.”

It said it intends to “take them home,” but asked Burundi to submit an official request for their repatriation.

Congolese president visits Angola

On Monday, DRC President Félix Tshisekedi visited Luanda, Angola, to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the face of regional challenges in Central Africa.

According to the broadcaster Radio Okapi, the visit focused on reviving the Luanda process aimed at restoring peace in eastern DRC, where violence continues despite the ratification of a peace agreement with Rwanda on December 4 in Washington, under US mediation.

For months, Angola served as a mediator in talks between the parties before handing that role to Qatar and the United States.