The latest massacre by what media outlets called massacre by Islamist rebels has killed 89 civilians in Democratic republic of Congo.
Byambwe killings were part of a series of coordinated attacks carried out between 13 and 19 November in several localities of Lubero Territory.
According to information gathered on the ground by UN human rights staff from the MONUSCO peacekeeping mission, 89 civilians were killed in total, including at least 20 women and an undetermined number of children.
Other areas hit by the violence include Mabiango, Tunarudi, Sambalysa, Thucha and Butsili, where abuses ranged from abductions and the looting of medical supplies to the burning of homes and the destruction of property.
UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told Friday’s briefing in New York that “as we dig deeper, and as we have sent people there, the information we have received is truly horrific.”
The UN extended its condolences to the affected families and communities, stressing that attacks on civilians, particularly medical facilities, may amount to war crimes and serious violations of international humanitarian law.
International media reports states number of armed groups and militia are operating in the conflict-wracked region, including Rwanda-backed anti-government M23 forces, which seized swathes of territory in North and South Kivu in January and February.
North of the M23’s area of operation, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an armed group of former Ugandan rebels which has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group, has been carrying out repeated massacres in both provinces.
perpetrators of the Byambwe attack are believed to be the same group that, on July 27, stormed a Christian church in Komanda (Ituri Province) during a religious service, armed with machetes and rifles, killing dozens of Christians gathered in prayer.
Pope Leo XIV forcefully condemned that assault during the General Audience of July 30, 2025.
“While I entrust the victims to God’s loving mercy, I pray for the wounded and for Christians around the world who continue to suffer violence and persecution,” said the Pope. “I urge those with responsibilities at both local and international levels to work together to prevent such tragedies.”
As a matter of fact, ADF is a terrorist group. Allied Democratic Forces (French: Forces démocratiques alliées; abbreviated ADF) is a Ugandan Islamist rebel group based in western Uganda and eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Some refer to the group as IS-DRC as a chapter of IS-CAP, but this terms is broader and tends to include non-ADF rebels.It is considered a terrorist organization by the Ugandan government and the United States. The group is sanctioned by the United States and the United Nations Security Council.[18][19] Originally based in western Uganda, the ADF has expanded into eastern DRC where nearly all of its fighting has occurred. Most ADF fighters are Ugandan Muslims from the Baganda and Basoga ethnic groups.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo, or more infrequently Zaire (its official name from 1971 to 1997), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is the second-largest country in Africa and the 11th-largest in the world. With a population of around 112 million, the DR Congo is the fourth-most populous in Africa and the most populous nominally Francophone country in the world. French is the official and most widely spoken language, though there are over 200 indigenous languages. The national capital and largest city is Kinshasa, which is also the economic center.
Congo has several challenges.
Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War or the Great War of Africa, was a major conflict that began on 2 August 1998, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, just over a year after the First Congo War. The war initially erupted when Congolese president Laurent-Désiré Kabila turned against his former allies from Rwanda and Uganda, who had helped him seize power.The conflict expanded as Kabila rallied a coalition of other countries to his defense. The war drew in nine African nations and approximately 25 armed groups, making it one of the largest wars in African history.
Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including neighboring Ituri province, there are more than 120 different armed groups active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently, some of the most active rebel groups include the Allied Democratic Forces, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo, the March 23 Movement, and many local Mai Mai militias.
Time is ripe all the world especially African continent rises to occasion to help Congo achieve peace and defeat all the terrorism. These recent attacks by Islamist rebels has pained entire humanity .
