Officials Discover Mass Graves in Congo City After Rebel Forces Retreat

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo have uncovered two mass burial sites containing at least 172 bodies in the eastern city of Uvira. The discovery came after AFC/M23 rebel fighters withdrew from the area under U.S. pressure following their brief occupation in December.

Government officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo have discovered two mass burial sites holding the remains of at least 172 people in the eastern city of Uvira, according to a provincial governor’s announcement this week.

The grim discovery was made after AFC/M23 rebel forces retreated from Uvira, a key transportation center situated on Lake Tanganyika close to the border with Burundi. The rebel group had taken control of the city in December but started pulling out just one week later due to pressure from the United States. Congo’s military forces regained control of Uvira last month.

Jean-Jacques Purusi, who serves as the government-appointed governor of South Kivu province where Uvira is situated, informed local media that the burial sites were located in the Kilomoni and Kavimvira districts. According to his Tuesday statement that was recorded and aired nationally on Thursday, one site held 31 bodies while the other contained 141 remains.

AFC/M23 representatives have not provided any response to requests for comment made on Friday. Local officials have not disclosed the cause of death for those found in the graves, and Reuters could not independently confirm the details surrounding these deaths.

A human rights advocate from the area, Mashauri Mwindule, informed Reuters that additional burial sites have been discovered in Kabimba, a community located approximately 8 kilometers from Uvira.

In December, the advocacy organization Human Rights Watch documented that M23 combatants had conducted executions without trial in Uvira, with bodies discovered across multiple districts, including Kavimvira. The organization based its report on accounts from local residents and a United Nations source.

While AFC/M23 did not address these specific accusations at that time, the group had previously characterized Human Rights Watch as conducting a “disinformation campaign” against their organization.

Human Rights Watch also noted that Congo’s military forces and their allied militia groups committed violations both before the rebels seized the city and during their own retreat.

The AFC/M23 rebel movement currently maintains control over large portions of both North and South Kivu provinces after launching a swift military campaign last year that resulted in their capture of the important cities of Goma and Bukavu.

Rwanda continues to deny accusations from Congo, the United Nations, and Western nations that it provides military equipment and personnel to support M23. Despite ongoing diplomatic efforts by various parties, including Qatar and the United States, armed conflict has persisted in recent weeks across multiple areas of eastern Congo.