The rebels said in a statement that government coalition forces launched “intense bombings against densely populated areas” and AFC/M23 positions in South and North Kivu provinces, using drones and SUKHOI-25 fighter jets.

They added that, simultaneously, allies of the DRC Armed Forces carried out ground attacks against several insurgent positions, particularly in Kadasomwa, Lumbishi, and Kasake, among others.

The incident occurred the day before, just hours after the signing of the protocol for the creation of the Ceasefire Monitoring and Verification Mechanism, signed under the mediation of Qatar in Doha.

“The belligerent regime in Kinshasa continues to endanger the lives of the civilian population and hinder any peace process,” the AFC/M23 statement, which described the government as “cynical about peace processes”, said.

Kinshasa “deliberately chooses to continue its war agenda, consciously ignoring the international community’s calls for a peaceful solution to the conflict,” the statement said.

It added that the human toll from the offensive continues to grow and “civilians are being intentionally massacred by drones, accompanied by infantry attacks,” although it did not specify the number of deaths and injuries from these actions.

The AFC/M23 asserted that the operations exacerbate the existing humanitarian crisis and called the attention of observers of the Ceasefire Monitoring and Verification Mechanism—the United States, Qatar, and the African Union—to verify what they described as sabotage of the peace process.

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