74 Killed, 200,000+ Displaced in Recent Clashes in Eastern DRC: UN

By Al Mayadeen English

Source: News websites

9 Dec 2025 20:01

UN reports 74 deaths, 83 wounded, and 200,000 displaced in South Kivu amid deadly clashes between Congolese forces and M23 militants.

At least 74 people, mostly civilians, have been killed and 83 others have been wounded in clashes between Congolese forces and M23 militants in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the United Nations said Monday.

The fighting, which took place between Dec. 2 and 7, involved heavy weapons and shelling in populated areas across the South Kivu province, including the territories of Uvira, Walungu, Mwenga, Shabunda, Kabare, Fizi, and Kalehe.

New UN data indicate that the violence has displaced more than 200,000 people since Dec. 2, with thousands more fleeing across borders into neighboring Burundi and Rwanda. The province already hosted 1.2 million internally displaced people prior to the latest escalation.

Bruno Lemarquis, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Congo, called for immediate protection of civilians, condemning the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and attacks on schools. He said the fighting has also hampered medical evacuations.

“They must ensure the protection of civilians, respect their distinction in military operations, and ensure safe, rapid, and unhindered access for humanitarian actors to deliver life-saving assistance, including care for the wounded,” Lemarquis said, urging all parties to respect international humanitarian law.

Trump's ceasefires imitate his business ventures

Late last week, on Dec. 4, 2025, the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and M23, via a broader agreement with Rwanda, ratified a new ceasefire pact in Washington under US mediation. The accord was meant to stabilize the conflict-torn eastern provinces, force withdrawals, and end hostilities following a peace agreement signed in June earlier in 2025.

Yet almost immediately, the ceasefire unraveled. On Dec. 5, 2025, violence flared, with heavy weapons reportedly used, civilian casualties mounting, and fresh displacement as towns in South Kivu came under attack. Within 24 hours, the government accused Rwanda of violating the deal, claiming Rwandan forces fired heavy weapons from across the border.

This fiasco adds to a string of ceasefires brokered under Trump’s watch that have repeatedly collapsed. Even the earlier truce reached in October 2025 during talks in Doha, hailed as a hopeful step, failed to prevent subsequent escalation. What remains clear is that agreements signed in high-profile ceremonies do little when armed groups on the ground continue fighting and commit ceasefire violations.

In the end, the new ceasefire, like its predecessors, shows that without robust enforcement, real political will, and on-the-ground oversight, these deals risk becoming symbolic. For civilians in eastern Congo, that means renewed suffering, displacement, and uncertainty all over again.