Rwanda-backed rebels take airport, bear down on eastern Congo city

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels captured a strategic airport and closed in on a second major city in the Democratic Republic of Congo, expanding their stranglehold over the country’s mineral-rich east.

The rebels overcame Congolese forces to take Kavumu airport, about 30km north of the city of Bukavu in South Kivu province, according to a statement posted on X on Feb 14. The airport held Congolese army aircraft and was one of the last major runways for large planes in the region.

“Kavumu and its surroundings, including the airport, are now under control” of the M23, the rebel group said. 

Residents of Bukavu were panicking and shots were heard around the city on the night of Feb 14, according to a civil society representative in Bukavu and diplomatic, humanitarian and business sources with colleagues in the city.

Congo’s army and the United Nations mission in Congo did not return messages asking for comment.

The assault comes two weeks after the rebels seized the city of Goma in North Kivu province, leaving more than 3,000 people dead and about the same number wounded. Leaders around the world condemned the invasion and have called for peace talks and a ceasefire, and for Rwandan soldiers to leave Congo.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame has said he does not know if his troops are in Congo and denies backing M23.

At a security conference in Munich on Feb 14, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi called for international sanctions against Rwanda and for the EU to stop buying Rwandan minerals, which he said are stolen from Congo.

He also blamed his predecessor, Mr Joseph Kabila, for being behind the rebellion, calling him “the true sponsor”.

Mr Kabila, who rarely speaks in public, did not immediately respond to a message to one of his long-time collaborators outside normal business hours.

Congo and UN officials have warned the rebel’s next stop may be Bukavu, a city of about a million people on the southern tip of Lake Kivu along Rwanda’s border. The trading hub is an important transit point for Congo’s gold riches from South Kivu, much of which is smuggled to neighboring countries, according to UN experts.

Congolese youth have been joining local militias in Bukavu to protect the city, which has been receiving thousands of displaced people as the fighting between Congo’s army and the M23 moved south over the past two weeks.

Soldiers from neighbouring Burundi are also involved in the fighting against the M23, which has led to worries of a wider regional conflict. BLOOMBERG