Clashes between M23 rebels and government-aligned militia in restive eastern Democratic Republic of Congo Sunday broke a fragile truce that had lasted several weeks, wounding 14 civilians, local sources said.
Local residents contacted by AFP in the troubled North Kivu region said that fighting broke out from 5:00 am (0300 GMT) between heavily armed M23 rebels and “Wazalendo” (“patriots” in Swahili) militias.
Health sources from the region told AFP by telephone that 14 civilians had suffered bullet wounds, including two teenagers.
A ceasefire between the DRC army and Rwanda-backed M23 had been in place since early August following mediation by Angola.
Peace talks between Kinshasa and Kigali have since stalled, but a new round of talks is planned in Luanda next weekend.
Kigali considers that the presence in eastern DRC of a Rwandan Hutu extremist group, the FDLR, constitutes a threat to Rwanda’s borders.
Since launching an offensive in late 2021, M23, a largely Tutsi militia, has seized large swathes of territory in the eastern DRC.
The mineral-rich region houses a string of rival rebel groups that have been plagued by internal and cross-border violence for the past three decades.
The resurgence of M23 has triggered a humanitarian disaster, particularly in North Kivu.