Burundi on Thursday denied reports of probable heavy losses of its soldiers in recent fighting against M23 rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The Burundi National Defense Force condemns with its last energy writers and propagators of hate and denigration messages against our valiant soldiers renowned for their discipline. We also condemn fallacious numbers of casualties of Burundian soldiers posted on social media, Gaspard Baratuza, spokesman for the defense ministry, told a press conference. He said the fabricated probable heavy human and material losses are aimed at demoralizing Burundian soldiers, adding that the photos and videos were disseminated on social media for propaganda reasons. The Burundian servicemen deployed in the DRC carry out their mandate with seamless professionalism, Baratuza said. He was responding to reports on social media and some international media outlets that quoted the M23 rebel group as saying that nearly 200 Burundian soldiers had died in recent fighting in DRC's North Kivu Province between M23 rebels and the Congolese military supported by the Burundian army and local militias. Baratuza said Burundian soldiers have been deployed to the eastern DRC since 2023 as part of bilateral and regional agreements. In areas where Burundian soldiers are present, Congolese citizens carry out their activities freely, he said.
