Nyabibwe (South Kivu) : the M23 killed a colonel in charge of FARDC operations

Colonel Alexis Rugabisha was killed on Saturday, February 1, 2025. He died in the fighting between the Congolese army and M23 rebels in the locality of Nyabibwe. It is in the territory of Kalehe in the province of South Kivu in eastern Congo. INFO SOS Médias Burundi

The FARDC officer (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo) commanded the 12th rapid intervention brigade. Military sources confirmed to SOS Médias Burundi that Colonel Rugabisha was killed during hostilities between the Congolese army and its allies and the M23 rebels.

“His men fled and he remained with very few soldiers with him. Snipers took advantage of this. He received several bullets in the chest and died on the spot,” our sources say.

Several residents fled their homes to seek refuge in Kalehe zone, Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu or Ijwi-sud.

“We are in insecurity because members of local militias especially attack us when they are defeated. The situation is likely to deteriorate,” a displaced person who was received by a family in Bukavu told SOS Médias Burundi.

The M23, which has retaken the city of Goma, the capital of North Kivu and the main city in eastern Congo, recently threatened to “march on Kinshasa, the capital” and “overthrow President Tshisekedi”.

In a statement, the Congolese army said that “Colonel Rugabisha fell in the middle of combat against the Rwandan army and its M23 auxiliaries”.

“The Congolese nation will remain forever grateful to this worthy son of the country who shone through his great feats of arms and who always defended his homeland against all Rwandan aggressions and all the rebellions maintained by Rwanda in our country”, the document concludes.