South Kivu : new alleged losses for the Burundian army raise renewed questions about its involvement in the DRC

SOS Médias Burundi

Fizi, July 9, 2026 — As fighting intensifies once again in the highlands of South Kivu, local sources report drone strikes targeting reinforcements of the Burundi National Defense Force (FDNB) in the Fizi territory. While this information has not been officially confirmed, it comes amid a backdrop of military setbacks suffered in recent days by the FARDC, the FDNB, and the Wazalendo militia against fighters from Twirwaneho, who are allied with the AFC/M23, according to several sources. They also reignite questions about the human cost of the Burundian military intervention in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where more than 29,000 soldiers were deployed between August 2022 and December 2025.

Reported strikes against Burundian reinforcements

Local sources in the Fizi territory of South Kivu report that three vehicles transporting ammunition and Burundian soldiers were targeted by drones in Mulima during the past week.

According to these sources, several soldiers were killed, including a colonel and a major from the Burundi National Defense Force (FDNB). However, no official figures were available at the time of publication, and this information could not be independently verified.

The same sources also claim that a boat carrying soldiers was bombed on Lake Tanganyika, off the Ubwari Peninsula, while transporting reinforcements to the Baraka and Fizi sectors and the Minembwe highlands.

According to testimonies gathered, these reinforcements were intended to support the positions of the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo), the FDNB (National Democratic Forces of Burundi), and the Wazalendo militia after the loss of several localities, including Point Zéro, Kakenge, Rubemba, Mikenge, and Kalongi, which these sources attribute to Twirwaneho fighters allied with the AFC/M23 (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo/M23).

Retreat on the ground

According to local sources, FARDC and FDNB soldiers withdrew from the Rugezi, Kakenge, and Point Zéro sectors toward Mukera, while others headed toward Misisi, en route to Tanganyika province in southeastern DRC.

After several days of fighting, a relative calm has reportedly returned to the Minembwe region. Displaced residents have begun returning to their villages. On social media, several members of the Banyamulenge community shared images purportedly showing a gradual return to normalcy in some areas that had fallen under the control of Twirwaneho/AFC-M23. SOS Médias Burundi was unable to independently verify these images.

A war that is taking a heavy toll on the FDNB

The exact number of Burundian soldiers killed in the fighting over the past week remains unknown. However, this information is a reminder of the losses already suffered by the FDNB since its involvement in eastern DRC.

Before the capture of Goma, the capital of North Kivu, several Burundian soldiers had been killed, including a major, at the time the highest-ranking Burundian officer killed in this theater of operations.

In December 2025, during clashes in the Rusizi Plain in South Kivu, the Burundian National Defense Force (FDNB) lost a colonel, the highest-ranking Burundian officer killed in action since the start of the military intervention in the Congo.

Following the withdrawal of the AFC/M23 from Uvira and the Rusizi Plain, achieved in part thanks to the US diplomatic pressure, the Burundian authorities carried out further redeployments to reinforce the units remaining on the front lines.

Since last February, the FDNB, the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo), and the Wazalendo militia had also received significant reinforcements of personnel and equipment, enabling them to contain the offensives of Twirwaneho and the AFC/M23 for several months. However, the events reported this week could indicate a new shift in the balance of power in this part of South Kivu.

More than 29,000 soldiers deployed

According to an internal report from the Congolese Ministry of the Interior and Security, consulted by SOS Médias Burundi, more than 29,000 Burundian soldiers were deployed to eastern DRC between August 2022 and December 2025 as part of a military agreement between Kinshasa and Gitega.

Burundian President Évariste Ndayishimiye has repeatedly defended this intervention. He stated that it was “normal” for Burundian soldiers to lose their lives in the DRC, given that they had chosen this profession. He also explained that Burundi was applying a Kirundi proverb that encourages helping one’s neighbor extinguish a fire in their house before it spreads to one’s own.

Meanwhile, at least 272 Burundian soldiers are currently serving sentences of up to life imprisonment. They were sent to Murembwe Central Prison in southwestern Burundi after refusing to be sent to fight in the DRC.

A regional war with multiple actors

The Burundian army is fighting alongside the FARDC and the Wazalendo militia against the AFC/M23. Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of supporting this political-military coalition, which Kigali denies. However, a report by UN experts published in December 2025 mentioned the presence of 5,000 to 7,000 Rwandan soldiers fighting alongside the AFC/M23.

Rwanda, for its part, accuses the DRC and Burundi of collaborating with the FDLR, a Rwandan Hutu armed group whose members are accused of participating in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis. Congolese authorities reject this accusation, while Gitega believes that Kigali is using the FDLR issue to justify its involvement in eastern DRC.

At the time of publication, neither the FARDC, nor the FDNB, nor the AFC/M23 leadership had reacted to reports of drone strikes against Burundian reinforcements in the Fizi territory.