Officials report that the Congolese army killed an M23 rebel spokesperson in a drone strike

The military spokesperson for the M23 rebel group, Willy Ngoma, was killed in an army drone strike in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, according to two senior rebel officials, a regional diplomat, and a Western adviser to the government.

The assault occurred close to Rubaya, in North Kivu, at approximately 3 a.m. (0100 GMT), following several days of ongoing drone strikes on the region by the Congolese army, as reported by a senior M23 official to Reuters.

Rubaya serves as a pivotal coltan-mining center, contributing approximately 15% of the global supply and establishing itself as a significant financial stronghold for the M23 rebels.

The Congolese government has recently included the site on a shortlist of strategic mining assets being presented to the United States as part of a minerals cooperation framework.

CONFLICT ESCALATES EVEN WITH MEDIATION ATTEMPTS

Civil society sources have reported intense clashes in multiple areas near Rubaya since Sunday, prompting hundreds of families to evacuate the region.

The death of Ngoma occurs amidst ongoing ceasefire efforts mediated by Qatar, with Kinshasa and M23 having formalized agreements in Doha to create a joint ceasefire monitoring and verification mechanism that includes Qatar, the United States, and the African Union as observers.

Since December 2022, the European Union has imposed sanctions on Ngoma because of his role as the spokesperson for M23.

A representative for the Congolese presidency chose not to provide a comment, while a representative for Congo’s army has yet to respond.

M23, which the United Nations claims is supported by Rwanda, holds significant territories in North and South Kivu provinces following a swift offensive last year that resulted in the capture of the key cities of Goma and Bukavu by the rebels.

In December, the rebels briefly seized control of the city of Uvira, which was subsequently reclaimed by the Congolese army last month. Congo reopened its border with Burundi on Monday.

This week, the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo sent a joint exploratory assessment team to Uvira to assist in implementing the ceasefire monitoring mechanism established in Doha and to assess the security situation in the region.