Despite repeated calls for peace, fighting rages on in Minembwe, South Kivu, where civilians endure relentless bombardment, forced displacement, and chronic insecurity. The toll on ordinary people is devastating.

On Wednesday, June 24, representatives of the Congolese and Rwandan governments met in London to reaffirm their commitment to ending the violence. They agreed to implement the peace accord signed in June 2025, enforce the ceasefire, and de-escalate tensions around Minembwe.

Minembwe is a strategically vital area in Fizi territory, fiercely contested between the Congolese army and the AFC-M23 rebels, each backed by allied militias—the Wazalendo on one side and the Twirwaneho on the other.

War spares nothing, not even health facilities

Combat continues almost daily in this administrative entity. Each day brings new casualties and material destruction. A resident of Minembwe described the drone strikes: “The paediatric ward was bombed yesterday. The Ilundu health centre near the airstrip was also hit. Every day there is war, and the drones terrorise the people. The population has fled. The situation is dire. The drone attacks keep coming.”

Even the Minembwe General Referral Hospital and several health centres have been targeted, according to local accounts.

Civilians trapped in endless war

In recent weeks, the escalation of fighting around Minembwe has driven thousands of civilians from their homes. The South Kivu civil society coalition is demanding that all signed agreements—starting with the ceasefire—be respected.

“We deplore the fact that civilians continue to be preyed upon by belligerents everywhere,” said Hypocrate Marume, a member of the South Kivu civil society consultation framework. “People keep fleeing. The crisis is worsening, and it is us, the population, who are being killed. As South Kivu civil society, we reiterate our call on both sides to lay down their arms and negotiate for peace.”

Battle for a highly strategic zone

The clashes in Minembwe are rooted in long-standing community tensions and rivalry for control of an area that holds both military and symbolic importance. Professor Philippe Doudou Kaganda, scientific director of the Centre for Research on Conflicts and Peace in the Great Lakes Region, explained: “Minembwe is a vast space that would allow whichever faction occupies it to launch counter-offensives against opponents, both in the mid-altitude plateaus and in the Ruzizi plain. It is a crossroads connecting to Mwenga territory. Minembwe has been a conflict zone for decades. When one faction captures it, it represents a territorial and ethnic victory.”

Peace remains a distant dream for the people of Minembwe, who now live under the constant threat of drone bombardments and gunfire exchanges that show no sign of stopping.