A drone strike in Goma killed three individuals, among them a French humanitarian employed by the UN, according to a representative of the M23 rebels.
The incident occurred around 4 a.m. on Wednesday in Himbi, an upscale residential district of the city that has been under M23 control since January 2025.
Lawrence Kanyuka, who speaks for the Congo River Alliance—a coalition that includes M23—denounced the strike and blamed the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo for orchestrating it.
“A drone assault is presently being directed at Goma by the terrorist regime of Kinshasa, far beyond the front lines,” he posted on X. “This aggression is an unacceptable provocation aimed at a densely populated city and intentionally puts thousands of civilians at risk.”
The authorities have offered no comment, and no party has claimed responsibility.
French President Emmanuel Macron affirmed on X that a French UNICEF aid worker was among those killed. He called for adherence to humanitarian law and for protection of staff who are “on the ground and devoted to saving lives.”
UNICEF expressed devastation and anger over the death of its employee, identified as Karine Buisset, adding: “This tragic event underscores the need to safeguard brave humanitarian workers at all times.”
Social‑media footage shows emergency crews extinguishing flames on the upper level of a two‑storey house with a torn roof. Analysts from the Centre for Information Resilience, a nonprofit, said the damage pattern matched that of an airstrike.
Goma, the capital of North Kivu province and the biggest city in eastern DRC, witnessed fierce combat last January when M23 forces attacked in an effort to seize territory, resulting in as many as 2 000 deaths.
Backed by Rwanda, M23 is among over a hundred militias confronting Congolese troops in the mineral‑rich east. The group claims its aim is to defend the interests of Congolese Tutsis and other minorities, shielding them from Hutu militias that fled to the DRC after participating in the 1994 Rwandan genocide against Tutsis.
M23 holds large portions of eastern DRC and has set up parallel administrations in the areas under its control.
Hostilities have persisted despite a US‑mediated peace pact signed in December by the Congolese and Rwandan governments.
In the preceding week, the United States sanctioned the Rwandan army and four senior officers, accusing them of “supporting, training and fighting” together with M23.
Wednesday’s drone strike signals a shift in the conflict’s dynamics, reflecting the growing reliance on unmanned aerial attacks by both sides.
The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a monitoring organization, logged 31 drone and air strikes in the DRC last month, the highest monthly total recorded.
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