Four civilians were killed and 10 others injured in an attack by FDLR elements in Rutshuru, North Kivu on Monday night, according to AFC/M23 movement. ALSO READ: FDLR kills 10 in eastern DR Congo Two women were also abducted during the attact that took place at around 9:45pm in Mulala, about 20 kilometres from Vitsumbi, AFC/M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka said on Tuesday. ALSO READ: FDLR kills woman, her five children in eastern DR Congo, reports say The FDLR is a UN- and US-sanctioned militia formed by remnants of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The Kinshasa-backed militia has operated in eastern DR Congo for decades, involved in attacks on Rwandan territory and the persecution Tutsi communities. ALSO READ: Makolo: DR Congo must disarm FDLR, repatriate its members Kanyuka said the continued presence of the Kinshasa-backed militia was contributing to worsening insecurity around civilian populations. “The Kinshasa regime’s deliberate and persistent refusal to neutralize the FDLR is a primary factor exacerbating insecurity and the ongoing deterioration of the security situation,” he said. ALSO READ: Former FDLR ‘Colonel’ on how militia funds its operations He said the impact was being felt both along the front lines and in densely populated civilian areas. The Washington Accords signed by Presidents Paul Kagame and Felix Tshisekedi in Washington in December 2025 provide for the neutralisation of the FDLR as part of measures to address insecurity in eastern DR Congo. The commitment to neutralise the militia has, however, yet to produce tangible action, with the FDLR continuing to operate in the region. ALSO READ: DR Congo: FDLR razes village in Walikale, killing four Kanyuka said condemned “the Kinshasa regime’s systematic deployment of the FDLR across various front lines.”
