The AFC/M23 coalition fighting the Democratic Republic of Congo’s government announced that the country’s army and allied groups fired shells at the Kamanyola center, killing three civilians and injuring five others.
AFC/M23 spokesman Lawrence Kanyuka announced on the afternoon of December 2, 2025, that the five injured included a man, a woman and three children.
The Kamanyola center is located in Walungu territory in South Kivu province. It has been controlled by AFC/M23 fighters since February 2025.
In areas not far from Kamanyola, such as Katogota and Luvungi in Uvira territory, heavy fighting has been taking place since dawn, pitting AFC/M23 and DRC forces allied with Wazalendo, FDLR and Burundian forces.
Residents of Kamanyola reported that before the fighting began, they saw hundreds of soldiers with rifles and heavy weapons, stationed in the surrounding areas.
These residents and those in other areas such as Katogota and Luvungi say that the fighting has prevented them from carrying out their livelihood activities because it is so intense.
In Bukavu, residents of this town, which has been under AFC/M23 control since February, also say that they can hear the sound of gunfire as if there is fighting taking place.
The ongoing fighting between the AFC/M23 and the DRC government forces is presenting the government of Qatar with a major challenge, as it recently agreed with both sides to a ceasefire so that peace talks can be held quickly.
Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, said last month that it was very difficult to reconcile the parties that did not stop fighting, but that his country would continue to work to achieve peace.
