GOMA – Fighting has intensified in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as government forces push toward Mpety, a major M23/AFC rebel stronghold in Walikale territory, after seizing two nearby villages earlier this week.

Local civil society officials told Zoomer Africa news editorial that trucks carrying M23 fighters and ammunition arrived in Mpety late Wednesday night, in what they described as an attempt to prevent the fall of the strategic base near Pinga.

Army Advances on Rebel Bastion

The Congolese army (FARDC), backed by community-based Wazalendo militias, retook Katobi and Luola on Monday and Tuesday after intense clashes.

In Luola, Wazalendo fighters burned an abandoned rebel camp in a move observers said signaled growing confidence among pro-government forces.

Military analysts say capturing Mpety would allow FARDC to sever M23 supply lines and restore state control over Walikale, a region that hosts some of the world’s largest deposits of cassiterite and coltan – key minerals for electronics and electric-vehicle batteries.

“Walikale is the economic heart of North Kivu. Whoever controls it controls mining revenues and taxation routes,” one regional security analyst told ChimpReports.

Ugandan Business and Security Concerns

Ugandan exporters are closely monitoring the clashes as Eastern Congo is one of Uganda’s fastest-growing markets. Any disruption around Walikale or the Goma–Beni corridor immediately affects exports.

DRC is Uganda’s second-largest export destination after Kenya, with official exports valued at more than 1.8 trillion shillings ($470 million) in 2024.

Goods including cement, foodstuffs and manufactured products pass through Bunagana and Mpondwe, both of which have previously been disrupted by M23 activity.

Ugandan security officials fear the renewed fighting could drive more refugees across the border. More than 40,000 Congolese fled into Uganda during the last major escalation in 2022–23, overwhelming reception centres in Kisoro and Kanungu.

Mediation Under Strain

The clashes come despite months of regional and international diplomacy.

The EAC-led Nairobi Process and the Luanda mediation framework, supported by SADC and U.S. envoys, have repeatedly called for disengagement and cantonment of M23 fighters.

DRC forces fighting M23 rebels in Eastern DRC

Kinshasa appears determined to regain ground first and talk later.

Recent military gains could strengthen the government’s hand in future negotiations.

Zoomer Africa Editorial and political analysis