The DR Congo military acknowledged a “breakthrough” made by the M23 group in the eastern part of the country, where the armed faction has taken control of a trading centre that supplies Goma.
The capture of Minova by M23 fighters, who are supported by the Rwandan army, further tightens the grip around the regional capital, Goma, in a conflict that has forced hundreds of thousands to flee.
In an unusual announcement, Army spokesman General Sylvain Ekenge stated that “the enemy has made a breakthrough on Bweremana in North Kivu and Minova in South Kivu.”
Earlier in the day, a military source said that gunfire exchanges were continuing but admitted that “the enemy has taken Minova.”
Minova, which has a population of approximately 65,000, is located in South Kivu province, between Lake Kivu and the Masisi mountains.
A source from a hospital and multiple humanitarian sources also verified that the M23 has taken over Minova.
Since it reemerged at the end of 2021, the M23 movement has consistently made territorial gains in eastern DRC. However, its takeover of Minova marks the latest in a series of significant gains in recent weeks.
In early January, M23 fighters captured Masisi, the administrative centre of Masisi territory in North Kivu province. Masisi has a population of around 40,000 and is located 80 kilometres (50 miles) from Goma, the capital of North Kivu.
