Russia today - 2/27/2026 3:00:34 PM - GMT (+2 )
More than 170 bodies have been found in two neighborhoods near the city of Uvira in South Kivu, the province’s governor has said
At least 171 bodies have been discovered in mass graves in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo), in an area recently held by M23 rebels, the Associated Press reported on Thursday, citing a local official. The reports come as violence escalates in the African state despite ceasefire efforts.
The graves were found near the city of Uvira in South Kivu province, Governor Jean-Jacques Purusi said. He relayed that 30 bodies had been discovered in Kiromoni, near the border with Burundi, and 141 others in Kavimvira.
The governor and the Local Network for the Protection of Civilians, a civil society group in the region, accused M23 fighters of killing civilians suspected of supporting the Congolese army or allied militias.
In December, the rebels seized Uvira on Lake Tanganyika before the Congolese army retook the city last month. Kinshasa said more than 1,500 people were killed in the offensive. The UN says about 200,000 people have fled the fighting, including more than 30,000 who crossed into neighboring Burundi.
The DR Congo’s mineral-rich east has been plagued by decades of violence, with dozens of armed groups, including M23, fighting Congolese forces for power and control of resources such as gold and coltan. Clashes escalated in early 2025, killing thousands and forcing large-scale displacement, according to UN agencies. The rebels seized Goma, the capital of North Kivu, in late January and later captured Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu.
Ceasefire efforts have repeatedly faltered, including Qatar-facilitated talks in Doha. Congolese authorities have long accused Rwanda of supporting the militants, allegations backed by a UN panel of experts. Kigali has denied the claims. The accusations have strained Rwanda’s relations with Western partners, including Belgium. In March, Kigali severed diplomatic ties with Brussels, accusing it of harboring “neo-colonial delusions” and interfering in the conflict.
In December, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, ratified a US-brokered agreement committing Kigali to withdraw its forces from the border and end alleged support for M23, while Kinshasa pledged to curb militias hostile to Rwanda. US President Donald Trump has said the pact, which includes calls for a joint security mechanism, gives Washington rights to local mineral wealth. The fighting has continued despite Trump’s claims that he ended the decades-long conflict.
The discovery comes days after M23 military spokesman Willy Ngoma was killed in a drone strike reportedly carried out by the Congolese army in neighboring North Kivu.
Mass graves have been uncovered repeatedly in the troubled Central African country. In 2023, UN investigators found sites containing dozens of civilians in Ituri province. Last July, Human Rights Watch said M23 had summarily executed more than 140 in villages near Virunga National Park, accusing the group of widespread abuses.
The UN says the conflict in eastern Congo has created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, displacing millions.
In a statement on Thursday, issued on the sidelines of a UN Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, United Nations experts reported that M23 fighters had used “extreme” violence against defenders of human rights in North and South Kivu.
“We are horrified by the gravity and brutality of the abuse committed against human rights defenders and their families,” the experts said.
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