Congolese soldiers and fighters from a pro-government militia have reentered the strategic eastern town of Uvira, the army and residents said Monday, about a month after M23 rebels seized the town. The fighting in eastern Congo has continued even as the United States has mediated a peace process for the region.
The Congolese army said in a statement that it took control of Uvira on Sunday following the rebels’ announcement that they would withdraw from the town. Army spokesperson Mak Hazukay said the Armed Forces were continuing their deployment in Uvira and surrounding areas to “consolidate their positions and secure people and their property.”
Alain Ramazani, a resident of Uvira, said residents welcomed the soldiers back after more than a month away. He added that soldiers were in the city alongside fighters from the pro-government Wazalendo militia.
Congolese army jeeps patrolled Uvira on Monday morning, but sporadic gunfire continued. Ghislain Kabamba, director of the Observatory for Human Rights, Justice and Local Governance for Social Cohesion in Congo and based in Uvira, said there was uncertainty over whether the gunfire involved Wazalendo fighters, Congolese soldiers or residents in the city who have been flooded with weapons.
M23 took control of Uvira last month following a rapid offensive. On Monday, Patrick Muyaya, the Congolese government’s spokesperson, said more than 1,500 people have been killed and about 300,000 displaced.
The rebel group later announced it would withdraw from Uvira, describing the step as a “unilateral trust-building measure” requested by the United States to facilitate the peace process.
Uvira had been the Congo government’s last major foothold in South Kivu province after Bukavu fell to the rebels in February. The capture of Uvira, the report said, allowed the rebels to consolidate a corridor of influence across the east and brought the conflict nearer to neighboring Burundi, which has maintained troops in eastern Congo for years.
The town’s seizure came days after Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan leader Paul Kagame met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington to reaffirm a U.S.-brokered peace deal. Congo, the U.S. and U.N. experts accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which the report said grew from hundreds of members in 2021 to around 6,500 fighters, according to the U.N.
The fighting has contributed to a wider humanitarian emergency in eastern Congo, where the report said more than 100 armed groups are vying for footholds in mineral-rich areas near the border with Rwanda. It said the conflict has displaced more than 7 million people, according to the U.N. agency for refugees, and that despite negotiations and the announced withdrawal from Uvira, fighting continued on several fronts with civilian and military casualties reported.