At least 12 people, including children, were killed in twin bomb blasts that hit two camps for displaced people in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The attacks occurred in Lac Vert and Mugunga, near the city of Goma, which is the capital of North Kivu province. The United Nations described the attacks as a flagrant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law, potentially constituting a war crime. Many of the victims were sleeping in their tents when the bombs were fired at the camps, causing injuries to at least 20 people. The Congolese military and the United States accused the military in neighbouring Rwanda and the M23 rebel group of being responsible for the attacks.
Rwanda denied the accusations made by the US, with government spokesperson Yolande Makolo stating that the Rwanda Defence Force would not attack displaced people as they are a professional army. Instead, Makolo blamed the assault on militias supported by the Congolese military. The DRC’s army spokesperson, Lieutenant-Colonel Guillaume Njike Kaiko, stated that the attacks were in retaliation for previous strikes on Rwandan army positions by the DRC earlier in which arms and ammunition were destroyed. The M23, which has taken control of parts of North Kivu, was also blamed by the government for the bombings.
The ongoing conflict in eastern DRC has led to hundreds of thousands of civilians fleeing neighboring areas towards Goma, which is located between Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border. International charity Save The Children reported that dozens of people were injured, mostly women and children, due to shelling close to a marketplace at one of the camps. The final death toll remained unclear, with the aid group’s country director in the DRC emphasizing the need to prioritize the protection of civilians, particularly children and families in displacement camps. President Felix Tshisekedi, who was abroad at the time, decided to return home following the bombings.
Tshisekedi has accused Rwanda of destabilizing DRC by supporting the M23 rebels, who recently captured the strategic mining town of Rubaya. This town is known for its deposits of tantalum, a key component in smartphone production. The US Department of State strongly condemned the attack and called for all states to respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Doctors Without Borders had to pause their distribution of essential items and medical consultations due to the rising insecurity in the region. The use of heavy artillery close to sites for internally displaced people near Goma was also condemned by the medical charity.
French President Emmanuel Macron joined Tshisekedi in Paris and called on Rwanda to stop its support for the M23 rebels. The violence in the DRC has led to the deaths of millions of people since 1996 and displaced around seven million, many of whom are beyond the reach of aid. The increasing conflict in eastern DRC continues to pose a significant threat to the safety and well-being of civilians in the region, prompting calls for an end to the use of explosive weapons near populated areas and a resolution to the ongoing political and military tensions.
