Algeria will chair on Sunday a UN Security Council briefing on the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to Algeria Press Service.
The session follows significant military advances by the “March 23 Movement” in North Kivu, including the capture of strategic towns like Minova, near the border with Rwanda, and the ongoing siege of the provincial capital, the source said.
On January 23, the “March 23 Movement” seized the town of Sake, located 27 kilometres from Goma, tightening the siege on the provincial capital. According to a UN report distributed to Security Council members on January 24, the recent attacks have displaced 10,000 people to Goma, with over 40,000 people displaced since early January as the fighting intensified.
The United Nations Stabilization Mission in the DRC is working to prevent the movement’s further advance on Goma through Operation Springbok, launched in November 2023 to strengthen the city’s defense.
In this regard, the Security Council may seek additional information on how the UN mission is coordinating with the Armed Forces of the DRC and the South African Development Community Mission in the DRC, which has been stationed in the region since December 2023.
As of now, two peacekeepers from the UN mission in the DRC have been killed and nine others injured in the recent attack that began on January 23, according to the UN report.
In a separate statement on Saturday, the South African National Defence Forces confirmed that nine of their peacekeepers lost their lives in the fighting against the “March 23 Movement,” including seven members of the South African Development Community in Darfur and two from the UN mission.
The Congolese government also confirmed the death of the military governor of North Kivu, Peter Cirimwami, who was injured on the front lines.
