M23 killed 18 miners in DR Congo, Amnesty says

Amnesty International said on September 21 that the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group carried out torture, arbitrary detention and other serious abuses against artisanal miners in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The rights organisation said it documented the summary killing of 18 artisanal miners at Rubaya in North Kivu province and at the Lomera gold mine in neighbouring South Kivu. Amnesty said witnesses and family members reported that 10 miners were beaten to death, two were shot dead and six abducted miners were later found dead.

Amnesty said abuses at artisanal mines under M23 control included summary killings, torture and ill-treatment, arbitrary detention, forced labour and forced recruitment. Miners told the organisation they were beaten if they asked for breaks, refused to hand over minerals or committed minor transgressions.

The organisation said more than 20 miners at Rubaya were held in underground detention cells and beaten three times a day by M23 fighters. It also said guards identified by witnesses as Rwandan collaborated with M23 and beat miners.

M23 has seized large parts of eastern DR Congo since resurfacing in late 2021. The group controls Rubaya, a major mining hub that produces about 15% of the world’s coltan, a metallic ore used in electronics.

UN experts have said M23 has generated revenue by taxing mining and trade at Rubaya, which the group denies. Amnesty also said it found evidence that gold from M23-controlled areas was illegally exported to Rwanda through smuggling routes, including by boat across Lake Kivu.