KIGALI, Rwanda
Authorities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo said Thursday that they had discovered two mass graves in South Kivu province, particularly in areas near the city Uvira vacated by the M23 rebels.
The graves, containing at least 170 bodies, were discovered in the Kiromoni and Kavimvira neighborhoods on the outskirts of the city, according to provincial governor Jean-Jacques Purusi.
Purusi told reporters the graves could be for victims of the M23 rebel group who were killed after being suspected of collaborating with government forces and pro-government militias.
“We have so far discovered two sites. One contained about 30 bodies in Kiromoni towards the Congo-Burundi border and another in Kavimvira containing 141 bodies,” he said.
Local authorities were reportedly tipped off by residents following a stinking smell when the graves were partially uncovered by recent heavy rains.
Civil society leaders said another mass grave was discovered in the town of Sange, about 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) from Uvira, where 10 bodies were recovered.
There was no immediate reaction from the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC/M23), a rebel alliance in eastern Congo which includes M23 rebels.
The group seized the strategic border city of Uvira in December before withdrawing its forces days later due to international pressure.
In January, Human Rights Watch accused the rebels of threatening and harassing civilians who were perceived to be opposed to their insurgency during their occupation of Uvira.
The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) is to deploy forces in Uvira to monitor the ceasefire between Congo’s government and the AFC/M23 rebels, a UN official announced earlier this month.
The M23 rebel group, which is supported by neighboring Rwanda, according to the UN and Western nations, controls significant territory in eastern Congo, including the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu seized early in 2025.
