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3d ago

Doha Peace Push Stalls as New Reports Detail Massacres and Rape in Eastern DRC

Rights groups say the protection crisis is worsening despite parallel U.S. and Qatari mediation.

A member of the M23 rebel group walks on the outskirts of Matanda in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, March 22, 2025. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra/File Photo
M23 fighters have seized large swathes of territory in eastern DRC
Image
BUKAVU, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO - FEBRUARY 22: M23 rebels escort a column of surrendering Congolese police officers on February 22, 2025 in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo. The Rwandan-backed rebel group M23 swept into Bukavu over the weekend, taking control of the city with a population of approximately one million people in Democratic Republic of the Congo's (DRC) South Kivu Province. Hundreds of thousands of people in the eastern part of the DRC have been displaced as the rebel group has made swift advances against Congolese pro-government forces in recent weeks. (Photo by Hugh Kinsella Cunningham/Getty Images)

Overview

  • M23 rebels missed the August 18 Doha deadline with the Congolese government, failed to attend the latest round, and conditioned any return on prisoner releases, according to mediators and rebel statements.
  • Human Rights Watch reported at least 140 civilians killed by Rwanda‑backed M23 in July, with total deaths in Rutshuru territory possibly exceeding 300 across at least 14 villages near Virunga National Park.
  • Amnesty International said both M23 and pro‑government Wazalendo militias committed gang rapes and other abuses that may amount to war crimes, and documented FARDC supplies of weapons and ammunition to Wazalendo.
  • Amnesty detailed abductions of hospital patients and staff, summary killings, and torture by M23, while Doctors Without Borders treated thousands of sexual‑violence survivors around Goma and Sake earlier this year.
  • Despite the Doha declaration and a June U.S.‑brokered DRC‑Rwanda accord, fighting persists after M23’s seizure of Goma and Bukavu, and HRW and Amnesty urged sanctions, vetting, and stronger accountability measures.