The UN has strongly condemned recent attacks carried out by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group in several locations in North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
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Congo’s rebel-held coltan mines continue to pump ore for world’s tech
Deep in the green hills of Masisi territory in North Kivu province, the artisanal mining site at Rubaya hums with the sound of generators as piles of white dust dot the landscape.
Thousands of workers extract, by hand, strategic minerals such as coltan, cassiterite, and manganese—essential for the production of phones, batteries, and other modern technologies.
Eastern Congo has been in and out of crisis for decades with more than 100 armed groups, most of which are vying for territory in the mining region near the border with Rwanda.
The conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian disasters with more than 7 million people displaced, including 100,000 who fled homes this year.
The Rubaya mine and surrounding area are under the control of the M23 armed group.
Mines like these have been at heart of discussions around M23’s takeover of part of eastern Congo, with the Congolese government alleging they want control of the minerals and are smuggling them illegally to Rwanda.
For the men working in Rubaya’s mines, little has changed, despite what some of them say are easier working conditions under the rebels.
Jean Baptiste Bigirimana has been working in the mines for seven years.
“I get 40 dollars a month, but that’s not enough. Children need clothes, education, and food. When I divide up the money to see how I will take care of the children, I realize it’s not enough,” he said, adding that he doesn’t know where the minerals he mines go once they leave Rubaya.
At times the mines were also under control of the Wazalendo, a militia allied with the Congolese army.
Alexis Twagira said he feels some things have improved under M23.
“I’ve been working in this mine for 13 years, and I’ve worked here under the Wazalendo. When they were here, they would harass us, sometimes taking our minerals and asking for money,” he said.
In April, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio oversaw the signing by Congo and Rwanda of a pledge to work toward peace in the region that would ease U.S. access to minerals in eastern Congo.
Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi sought out a deal with the Trump administration that could offer the U.S. better access to his country’s resources in exchange for U.S. help calming hostilities.
Congo and Rwanda hope the involvement of the United States — and the incentive of major investment if there’s enough security for U.S. companies to work safely in east Congo — will calm the fighting and militia violence that have defied peacekeeping and negotiation since the mid-1990s.
Bahati Moïse is a trader who resells the coltan that leaves Rubaya’s mines.
He said he just hopes that mine workers can be valued as much as the minerals they work so hard to extract.
“The whole country, the whole world knows that phones are made from the coltan that comes here, but look at the life we live,” he said.
“We can’t continue like this.”
SADC begins withdrawal of its peacekeeping forces from DR Congo
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) began on Tuesday the withdrawal of its peacekeeping forces from the eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)through Rwanda.
Local media sources in Rwanda reported seeing SADC forces moving several trucks of soldiers and equipment from Goma in North Kivu province through Rwanda.
Reports indicate that the convoy will travel to Chato in north-western Tanzania before repatriation to various countries.
“Our orders say by May 30, everyone and everything needs to be out of Goma and on its way. It was chaos over the weekend, but nobody is complaining because we’re finally going home,” one soldier is reported as saying.
Rwanda had agreed in April to give safe passage to the SADC forces.
The force of several thousand peacekeeping troops from South Africa, Malawi and Tanzania had been sent to eastern Congo by the SADC in 2023 to help the Congolese government pacify a mineral-rich region plagued by various insurgencies.
The SADC military mission had suffered heavy losses in the previous months, with around a dozen soldiers from South Africa, Malawi, and Tanzania killed as the M23 rebels seized control of Goma.
Their termination came after losing about 17 soldiers to the rebels in the DRC.
The rebels have said they want to take their fight to the far-off capital, Kinshasa, while Congo’s president has called for a massive military mobilization to resist the rebellion.
The M23 rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, over 1,000 miles away.
Rwanda has rejected charges, including by the Congolese government and U.N. experts, that it backs M23 in eastern Congo, a region that is now one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises with more than 7 million people displaced.
The withdrawal of SADC troops comes after the M23 took control of eastern Congo’s main city of Goma and seized the second largest city, Bukavu, in offensives over the past two months.
Fourteen South African soldiers, and at least three from Malawi, were killed in January in the fighting. The United Nations later evacuated a group of critically injured South Africans.
Togo’s Faure Gnassingbé leads African Union’s mediation efforts in DRC
Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé has been appointed as the African Union’s new mediator in the ongoing conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group.
This role marks a significant shift in the AU’s efforts to resolve the crisis, as Gnassingbé replaces Angolan President João Lourenço, who stepped down to focus on Angola’s presidency of the AU.
The conflict in eastern DRC has intensified since January 2025, when the M23 launched a rapid offensive, capturing key cities like Goma and Bukavu in North Kivu province.
Despite previous mediation efforts by Angola, progress has been limited. Talks scheduled in Luanda failed after the M23 withdrew following EU sanctions on some of its leaders.
As the new mediator, Gnassingbé will work towards achieving “sustainable peace, reconciliation, and stability” in the Great Lakes region.
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He faces the challenge of coordinating with other mediation efforts, notably those led by Qatar, which recently facilitated direct talks between the Congolese and Rwandan presidents in Doha.
Gnassingbé will also collaborate with a panel of five former African presidents appointed as facilitators by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC).
This team includes former presidents Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa, Catherine Samba-Panza of the Central African Republic, and Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia.
The appointment of Gnassingbé signals a renewed push by the AU to resolve the conflict. However, the parallel mediation efforts by Qatar and the complex regional dynamics pose significant challenges. Gnassingbé’s diplomatic skills and Togo’s experience in regional mediation will be crucial in navigating these complexities and achieving lasting peace in the region.
Source: Africafeeds.com
Togo’s Faure Gnassingbé leads African Union’s mediation efforts in DRC
Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé has been appointed as the African Union’s new mediator in the ongoing conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group.
This role marks a significant shift in the AU’s efforts to resolve the crisis, as Gnassingbé replaces Angolan President João Lourenço, who stepped down to focus on Angola’s presidency of the AU.
The conflict in eastern DRC has intensified since January 2025, when the M23 launched a rapid offensive, capturing key cities like Goma and Bukavu in North Kivu province.
Despite previous mediation efforts by Angola, progress has been limited. Talks scheduled in Luanda failed after the M23 withdrew following EU sanctions on some of its leaders.
As the new mediator, Gnassingbé will work towards achieving “sustainable peace, reconciliation, and stability” in the Great Lakes region.
– Advertisement –
He faces the challenge of coordinating with other mediation efforts, notably those led by Qatar, which recently facilitated direct talks between the Congolese and Rwandan presidents in Doha.
Gnassingbé will also collaborate with a panel of five former African presidents appointed as facilitators by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC).
This team includes former presidents Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa, Catherine Samba-Panza of the Central African Republic, and Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia.
The appointment of Gnassingbé signals a renewed push by the AU to resolve the conflict. However, the parallel mediation efforts by Qatar and the complex regional dynamics pose significant challenges. Gnassingbé’s diplomatic skills and Togo’s experience in regional mediation will be crucial in navigating these complexities and achieving lasting peace in the region.
Source: Africafeeds.com
U.N. helicopter crashes in east Congo
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A United Nations helicopter on Friday crashed while flying over east Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province.
The U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) confirmed the crash saying the Humanitarian Air Service chopper it was managing went down near the city of Goma.
The three crew members on board sustained injuries, according to Reuters reporting. There were no passengers on board.
WFP said the cause of the incident was not yet clear.
In March this year, eight peacekeepers were killed when a U.N. helicopter crashed in the area of Tshanzu, in North Kivu.
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That helicopter went down amid clashes between the Congolese army and a rebel group known as the M23.
Congo’s army at the time said the helicopter was shot down by rebels, which the M23 denied the claim.
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Source: Africafeeds.com