Burundian and Congolese forces continue to expand coordinated military operations in eastern DR Congo, with reports of joint offensives deploying heavy artillery and combat drones against villages in Minembwe, South Kivu.
Also read: Congolese lawyer questions mediators’ silence amid attacks against Banyamulenge
In a statement released on April 1, Congolese lawyer Moise Nyarugabo denounced what he described as “the war of (Presidents) Felix Tshisekedi and Evariste Ndayishimiye against the Banyamulenge,” detailing combined operations by the Congolese army (FARDC) and Burundi’s National Defence Force (FDNB).
He warned that the offensives have already inflicted significant civilian casualties and deepened the humanitarian crisis.
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“During the night of March 30-31, drones belonging to Mr. Tshisekedi and Mr. Ndayishimiye bombed the village of Gakenke,” Nyarugabo wrote, noting that dozens of livestock were killed and herders injured.
He added that Burundian and FARDC battalions, after bombarding Gakenke, Kalongi Kalingi, and Bidegu with heavy artillery attempted to advance and occupy them, but were repelled after inflicting civilian casualties.
Also read: Banyamulenge take Burundi govt to court over abuses in Minembwe
According to his account, the joint operations continued into the following night with renewed drone strikes on multiple villages, including Ilundu, causing further destruction of livelihoods.
Nyarugabo described the attacks as systematic, accusing both governments of targeting a community while the international community remained silent.
These actions, he said, “call into question the attitude, complicity, and indifference of all those who witness these horrors and yet remain silent.”
He said: “The silence is as if to say they are waiting to be personally harmed before rising up against the cruelties inflicted by the two governments on the Banyamulenge, besieged in Minembwe, deprived of everything, living in a concentration camp where the elderly, children, and women are killed, their cows (their only wealth) are killed as well, so that those not killed by drones or mortar bombs must die of hunger or disease.”
“And tomorrow, governments and humanitarian organizations will come to lecture us. What cynicism!”
Also read:: How Burundian troops in South Kivu sparked a distinct humanitarian crisis amid DR Congo’s wider war
Nyarugabo’s earlier post on March 30 underscored the human cost of the escalating violence. He recounted the death of a child, Patient Uwezo Ombeni, reportedly killed by a drone strike while tending cattle in Gakenke.
“This is not a mistake or an accident. These killings are intentional, deliberate, and premeditated,” he wrote, attributing responsibility to the leadership of both countries and warning of future accountability.
“The blood of these vulnerable innocents will undoubtedly stain those who facilitate, cover up, and encourage the perpetrators of this genocide against the Banyamulenge. Those who give them carte blanche to exterminate people.”
His sentiments echo earlier reports by AFC/M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka, who on March 31 said coalition forces aligned with Kinshasa had launched “widespread and coordinated attacks across all front lines,” including Minembwe, Kalehe, and Lubero.
Mise à jour du 31 mars 2026 Depuis les premières heures de ce mardi 31 mars 2026, la coalition des forces du régime de Kinshasa, notamment les FARDC, FDLR, milices wazalendo, mercenaires ainsi que la Force de Défense Nationale du Burundi, a déclenché des attaques généralisées et…– Lawrence KANYUKA (@LawrenceKanyuka) March 31, 2026
Kanyuka said the offensive involved not only FARDC and Burundian troops, but also the Kinshasa-backed Rwandan genocidal militia FDLR, Wazalendo militias, and mercenaries, describing the operations as “deliberately targeting densely populated areas with heavy artillery and combat drones.”
In Minembwe, he cited villages such as Rugezi, Kalingi, Gakenke, and Bidegu as under sustained bombardment.
The FDLR, a group formed by perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, has long been implicated in the persecution of Congolese Tutsi communities, and launched cross-border attacks on Rwanda.
While the Washington Accords signed on June 27 between Rwanda and DR Congo committed both countries to neutralizing the militia, with Rwanda agreeing to lift defensive measures in return, Kinshasa continues to empower the FDLR to fight on its behalf against the AFC/M23 movement.
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In a separate statement on April 1, Kanyuka accused the Congolese government of “deploying the FDLR across all front lines, in total disregard of its commitments to neutralize them,” calling it “a blatant violation of the ceasefire.”
À l’attention du peuple congolais et de la communauté internationale : Le régime de Kinshasa persiste, avec une irresponsabilité coupable et une duplicité révoltante, à déployer les FDLR sur toutes les lignes de front, au mépris total de ses engagements de les neutraliser. Cette…– Lawrence KANYUKA (@LawrenceKanyuka) April 1, 2026
“The offensives of Kinshasa’s coalition forces spread death and devastation: innocent civilians are massacred, homes reduced to ashes, and thousands of families displaced,” Kanyuka said.
“This scorched-earth policy only worsens an already dire humanitarian crisis, provoked and amplified by Kinshasa’s indiscriminate use of drones and heavy artillery.”
He added that “silence and inaction are no longer acceptable. This deliberate choice reflects a blatant disregard for any prospect of a peaceful resolution to the conflict.”
