DRC fighting forces evacuate wounded civilians

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Some 20 wounded civilians, including children were evacuated between Saturday and Sunday from eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Red Cross said, as fighting raged despite an accord signed between Kinshasa and Kigali.

DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame ratified an agreement in Washington on Thursday that was intended to restore peace in eastern Congo, but which so far has had little effect on the ground.

After a period of relative stability on the front since March, fighting has intensified again since Monday in South Kivu province, according to security and military sources.

The clashes pit M23 troops, still supported by Kigali, against the Congolese army, backed by thousands of soldiers from neighbouring Burundi, in a region rich in natural resources that has been fought over for three decades.

According to a Red Cross statement, "the humanitarian situation in South Kivu has deteriorated sharply following the intensification of violent fighting, resulting in numerous injuries and massive population displacements."

The organisation said 21 wounded, including seven children, had been evacuated to the hospital in Uvira since Saturday.

On Sunday, fighting continued north of Uvira, the last major town in the province not controlled by M23 and which faces Burundi's economic capital Bujumbura across Lake Tanganyika.

At least 20 Burundian soldiers have died fighting in the DRC since Monday, according to Burundian military sources. The Burundian army has been deployed in eastern DRC since October 2023 as part of a military cooperation agreement.