Congolese forces in the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have been fighting the March 23 Movement (M23) rebel group since 2012 in one of the world’s most complex ongoing conflicts. A major intensification in the fighting since the start of 2025 has escalated the scale of the humanitarian crisis and threatens the onset of a wider regional war.
On January 27th, M23 captured the North Kivu Province’s capital, Goma. More recently, M23 rebels entered Bukavu, the eastern DRC’s second-largest city, with a population of 2 million and strategically located on the border with Rwanda. The head of the Tutsi rebel alliance, Corneille Nangaa, states that “we will continue the march of liberation all the way to Kinshasa,” the capital of the DRC, indicating that fighting will only intensify in the coming months.
The DRC is the fourth most populous country in Africa. It spans an area that the UK could fit into nearly 10 times and boasts some of the world’s largest deposits of minerals crucial to the production of everyday devices.
Despite its overwhelming global implications, the DRC conflict is relatively under-reported. Here is what you need to know:
First, some context…
With a long history of upheaval, instability, authoritarian rule, and up to 250 ethnic groups calling the region home, the current conflict in the DRC is rooted in a deeper history of Hutu-Tutsi ethnic division. Belgian colonial rule reified ethnic divisions by elevating Tutsis to positions of power while marginalising the Hutu. The Belgian withdrawal saw the Hutus overthrow the Tutsi-led government in Rwanda, prompting many Tutsis to take shelter in neighbouring states and triggering decades of inter-ethnic violence.
The 1994 Rwandan Genocide represented the most destructive manifestation of these tensions. In just 100 days, Hutu Power extremists slaughtered around one million Tutsis and some moderate Hutus. Eventually, the Hutu regime was toppled by the Tutsi-led Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), headed by Paul Kagame, who has remained Rwanda’s president since.
Following the genocide, around two million Hutus fled into what was then Zaire (now the DRC). Some more militant among them formed the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a group that the Rwandan government has accused of being a direct security threat. Kagame’s insistence on the DRC being an “unsafe neighbour” continues to be a barrier to any resolution.
Who are the M23 rebels?
In 2012, M23 emerged in east DRC with their first offensive—but what are they fighting for?
The group claims to exist as a force to protect the DRC’s ethnic-Tutsi population from threats posed by Hutu militias, namely the FDLR. After unsuccessful attempts to integrate Tutsi militias into the DRC’s military, M23 was formed. Head of M23’s political wing, Bertrand Bisimwa, has emphasised that the group is fighting a “defensive war” in a “struggle for survival” against existential threats to ethnic Tutsis. Bisimwa further argues that ethnic Tutsis have been reduced to the rank of second-class citizens.
Rwanda’s responsibility
M23 soldiers are well-trained and professionally armed with state-of-the-art technologies. The group’s advanced arsenal has included the use of Israeli-made anti-tank guided missiles, technology to interfere with GPS signals, and Chinese-supplied drones.
As such, Kinshasa and the international community have pointed fingers at Rwanda, condemning Kigali’s alleged support for the rebels. President Kagame’s government has launched full-scale invasions of the DRC twice before – in 1996 and 1998 – with the justification of protecting Rwanda from FDLR attacks. Although Kigali has previously denied involvement in the current M23 offensive, the Rwandan government has instead begun to justify their military actions in the DRC following the mounting evidence regarding their support. Rwanda believes it is within their right to protect the ethnic-Tutsi population—justifications not too dissimilar from those of M23 spokespersons themselves.
UN experts have emphatically denounced the use of high-tech weaponry by M23 and stated that the presence of the RDF is a violation of the DRC’s sovereignty.
Natural resources
M23 rebels have also been accused of exploiting the natural resources of the mineral-rich region for Rwanda’s benefit. The DRC is home to some of the largest reserves of metals and rare minerals such as diamonds, gold, copper, cobalt, tin, and lithium, and at least 40% of the global supply of tantalum, essential for the production of smartphones. The global demand for these natural resources has made possessing them very profitable, fuelling the conflict.
For over a year, M23 has controlled the coltan-mining region of Rubaya, generating an estimated $800,000 a month through production taxes. It has been speculated that the extracted resources are being transported towards Rwanda via proxy militias, claims that President Kagame’s government has denied.
In December 2024, the Congolese government filed criminal charges against Apple for the purchase of ‘conflict minerals,’ materials that are controversial because they support the activities of armed groups. Apple denies the allegations, stating that the company had notified suppliers to cease sourcing minerals from the DRC and Rwanda in light of the ongoing conflict. Criticism has also been directed towards the European Commission for signing a strategic minerals deal with Rwanda, which critics have depicted as an act of Western greed and hypocrisy.
Although social media campaigns such as the iPhone 16 boycott have been launched, demanding accountability for the use of blood minerals, experts have urged against framing the conflict in the DRC exclusively in terms of a quest for natural resources. Rather than acknowledging the complex influences of geopolitics, history, and ideology, using raw materials as the primary lens to approach the conflict produces an incomplete narrative.
A Humanitarian Emergency
While the conflict poses supply problems for the global tech industry, a more immediate consequence has been immense levels of human suffering in the Kivu Provinces. Since the 26th of January, almost 3,000 people have been killed and 2,880 injured in attacks by M23. Matthew Saltmarsh, spokesperson for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), has expressed grave concern for the wellbeing of civilians with the number of internally displaced peoples (IDP) rising to over 400,000 in 2025.
Goma is a regional hub for security and humanitarian efforts, but road blockades and the closure of its airport since M23’s takeover have severely limited access to supplies.
The UN and its humanitarian partners appealed for $7.5 billion by 2025 to support 35 million people affected by crises in West Africa. Of this, $2.5 billion was earmarked to target 11 million out of the 21.1 million people reported as being in need in the DRC.
International Interventions
The impact of international intervention has been inconsistent and controversial. Western powers have leverage over Rwanda, with foreign aid and loans making up a third of the country’s budget. Foreign governments could pressure Rwanda to stop supporting M23, a strategy that saw some past success.
President Kagame has positioned Rwanda as a regional hub for African services, including finance and technology. As such, governments and institutions have been eager to work with Rwanda as it has grown to be one of the most effective governments in the region.
Members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) have involved themselves in efforts to end the conflict. The SADC deployed peacekeeping forces in the DRC, but their presence has only served to agitate tensions further. President Kagame has accused South African forces of working alongside the FDLR, taking to X to warn South African President Cyril Ramaphosa against direct interventions into the conflict.
As of the 14th of February, the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC) is set to discuss the conflict, the humanitarian crisis and finding a path to peace. This comes after the EAC-SADC meeting that called for the establishment of neutral zones in M23-controlled territories. It is expected that the PSC summit will result in a communique calling for the immediate cessation of hostilities.
Challenges to Peace
Why has it been so difficult to reach a peace agreement?
Previous attempts at brokering a deal have fallen apart before President Kagame and the DRC’s President, Félix Tshisekedi, even got to the negotiating table. The long history of conflict between Rwanda and the DRC has fostered a deep mistrust between the governments, while Kigali maintains its right and duty to protect and defend the Tutsi population.
Another major roadblock has been the absence of a direct dialogue between Kinshasa and M23. While the Congolese government refuses to open a direct line of communication with the rebel group, M23 spokespersons have emphasised that they are fighting for structural political change rather than conciliation or integration.
As peace appears elusive, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, warns that the “worst may be yet to come”. The deeply rooted systemic issues will need to be addressed to establish a durable peace. However, as the conflict attracts more international attention, it is hoped that peace will not be too far around the corner.