DRC: Amnesty accuses M23 of rape and summary executions

Kinshasa, DR Congo

Sunday, August 24, 2025

Amnesty International accuses armed groups, including M23, of committing gang rapes, summary executions, and abductions in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in a report published Wednesday.

Rich in resources, eastern DRC has been plagued by conflict for 30 years, and violence has intensified since 2021 with the resurgence of the anti-government group M23, which seized the major cities of Goma in January and Bukavu in February.

The March 23 Movement (M23), supported by Rwanda, as well as local militias affiliated with Kinshasa, “have committed mass rapes of women and widespread human rights abuses against civilians” that “may amount to war crimes,” Amnesty International said in the report.

Amnesty said it interviewed more than 53 victims and witnesses to compile the report.

“All victims of gang rape committed by M23 combatants said that the perpetrators wore uniforms resembling those of the M23 and spoke Kinyarwanda, the language spoken by some M23 combatants,” the authors said.

In eastern DRC, “women are not safe anywhere: they are raped in their homes, in the fields, or in the camps where they seek refuge,” denounced Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s regional director for East and Southern Africa, quoted in the report.

M23 fighters “have also committed human rights abuses against members of civil society, journalists, and lawyers,” according to Amnesty, which cites “acts of torture” and “enforced disappearances” in particular.

Amnesty also claims to have evidence that the M23 is guilty of five summary executions.

“The brutality of the warring parties knows no bounds. These atrocities are intended to punish, intimidate, and humiliate civilians,” said Tigere Chagutah.

“Rwanda and the DRC cannot continue to shirk their responsibilities; they must bring all those responsible to justice.” suspects to answer for their actions,” he added.

Violence against civilians continues in the east, where clashes in recent weeks between the M23 and the Congolese army, supported by local militias, have displaced thousands of people.

More than two million people have been forced to flee their homes since January in the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu, where the M23 is active.

Humaniterre with AFP