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U.N. warns M23 advance toward Bukavu as South Kivu remains without peacekeepers
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Summary
The U.N. said the M23 rebel group is moving quickly toward Bukavu, citing continued clashes, reported cross‑border movements and humanitarian risks across North and South Kivu; U.N. and Congolese officials agreed to form a joint working group.
The United Nations said on Thursday that the M23 rebel group is advancing toward the city of Bukavu in South Kivu province and that the security situation across eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo remains volatile in the absence of U.N. peacekeepers in parts of the region.
“The mission is obviously operating in an extremely challenging environment and is test and is being tested,” the U.N. spokesperson said, describing clashes between M23 and Congolese Armed Forces and allied groups south of Minova and reporting “credible reports that the M23 is moving rapidly towards the city of Bukavu.”
U.N. officials said their peacekeeping mission reported cross‑border movements by Rwandan defense forces toward South Kivu and that the mission withdrew from parts of South Kivu in June of last year. In North Kivu, the city of Goma remained tense, with intermittent shooting, a damaged airport runway that is nonoperational and outages of water and electricity for nearly a week. Unexploded ordnance in and around Goma is restricting movement for civilians, humanitarians and peacekeepers.
U.N. humanitarian partners described heavy strain on health services. Since the start of January, humanitarian partners have recorded more than 1,000 injuries caused by weapons and explosive devices in Goma and other affected areas, the U.N. spokesperson said, and the World Health Organization reported hospitals in Goma are saturated. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and local Red Cross teams reported efforts to remove numerous corpses in Goma to reduce public‑health risks.
The U.N. peacekeeping leadership met DRC authorities this week. “Bintu Keita, the special representative of the secretary general and head of that peacekeeping mission, met with the prime minister of the DRC, Judith Toluca, key ministers, as well as the leadership of the Congolese Army and Police, and they agreed to establish a joint government, a Manusco working group to closely work on all relevant issues,” the spokesperson said.
U.N. agencies added that humanitarian partners plan to resume deliveries when security permits. UNHCR said it is updating contingency plans with neighboring states and reported nearly 600 people requested asylum in Rwanda in recent days.
The U.N. emphasized that political efforts under the Luanda process remain the path to durable resolution and said it is urging the parties to recommit to existing commitments.
The U.N. spokesperson said staff relocations and other precautions are under way, but reiterated that U.N. peacekeepers are not currently operating in parts of South Kivu.
The U.N. and its partners said they will continue to assess conditions on the ground and to adjust humanitarian access as security allows.
