M23 rebels killed more than 140 people in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in July, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Wednesday.
The massacres took place between July 10 and 30 in at least 14 villages and farming areas near Virunga National Park, in Rutshuru territory, according to HRW. The rights group warned that “credible reports indicate the number of people killed in Rutshuru territory since July may exceed 300, among the worst atrocities by the M23 since its resurgence in late 2021.” Victims included farmers and residents—men, women, and children—killed in their homes, fields, and along the Rutshuru River.
Tensions remain high on the ground. On Tuesday, the Congolese army accused M23 of repeated assaults on its positions in North and South Kivu provinces. Earlier this month, the UN human rights office reported that M23 fighters killed at least 319 civilians in attacks on four villages in North Kivu in July.
The rebel group, at the center of eastern Congo’s conflict, now controls significant swaths of territory, including the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu, which it seized earlier this year.
