DRC : evacuation of unarmed Congolese soldiers and police officers from Goma to Kinshasa, with support from the ICRC and MONUSCO

SOS Médias Burundi

Goma, April 30, 2025 – Several hundred unarmed members of Congolese security forces, protected since January by MONUSCO in Goma, have begun to be transferred to Kinshasa with the support of the ICRC. This humanitarian operation, welcomed by Kinshasa, comes as the M23 controls the capitals of North and South Kivu.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) began a major operation on Wednesday to evacuate several hundred unarmed Congolese soldiers and police officers, along with their families, from Goma to Kinshasa. These people had been gathered for more than three months at a MONUSCO base, the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the DRC, in North Kivu.

The operation, which will last several days, is being carried out at the joint request of the Congolese Ministry of Defense, MONUSCO, and the M23 armed group. Upon their arrival in Kinshasa, the evacuees will be taken care of by the Congolese authorities.

According to sources familiar with the matter, more than 2,000 soldiers and police officers were initially stationed at the UN base in Goma. Around 500 of them have reportedly chosen to join the ranks of the M23, an armed group that now controls several strategic locations, including the provincial capitals of North and South Kivu, a region coveted for its significant mineral resources.

“This role as a neutral intermediary can help resolve complex humanitarian problems by reducing the impact on populations,” said François Moreillon, head of the ICRC delegation in the DRC. He emphasized that all evacuees gave their free and informed consent before their departure.

The ICRC emphasized that it is not participating in political negotiations but is acting as a neutral facilitator. It calls on all parties concerned to scrupulously respect the international humanitarian law throughout the operation.

In a statement, the DRC Armed Forces (FARDC) welcomed this initiative, thanking the ICRC for its “good offices” and MONUSCO for protecting the disarmed in a difficult security context. The Congolese army hopes that the operation will be conducted in compliance with the Geneva Conventions and the commitments made by all parties.

This evacuation takes place in a tense regional context, as Southern African Development Community (SADC) troops begin their gradual withdrawal from the DRC via Rwanda, leaving a fragile security situation in the east of the country.