M23 rebels recaptured two villages in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province on Thursday after heavy clashes with the army and allied Wazalendo fighters, a local media outlet reported.
The villages of Kasenyi and Luke in Masisi territory fell after the rebels mounted a counteroffensive on Wednesday, a day after losing them, a local news website reported, citing security and civilian sources who said fighters were reinforced from neighbouring Rutshuru Territory.
Residents have reportedly begun fleeing toward safer areas, and no official casualty toll from the fighting was immediately available.
The surge in fighting follows the Congolese army’s announcement on Tuesday that it killed Willy Ngoma, the M23 rebel group’s military spokesperson, during operations in the eastern part of the country.
Capture of strategic towns
Ngoma was reportedly killed in a military drone strike near the mining town of Rubaya in Masisi.
The M23 rebel group has been at the centre of the conflict in eastern DR Congo.
Since the rebel group resurfaced in late 2021, it has captured several strategic towns in eastern DRC provinces, including the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu early in 2025.
Kinshasa and the UN allege that Rwanda supports the rebel group, allegations that Kigali has repeatedly denied.
Clashes intensify
Despite an Angolan-brokered ceasefire declared this month effective February 18, clashes intensified between government forces and M23 rebels in recent days in eastern DR Congo, displacing thousands of people from their homes, according to civil society groups.
