One South African Soldier Killed, 13 Injured in DRC

GOMA, DRC,Xinhua: One South African soldier was killed and 13 others injured Thursday in fighting against rebels on Thursday in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the South African National Defense Force (SANDF).

The fighting occurred in the town of Sake, located in the eastern province of North Kivu, against the March 23 Movement (M23), the SANDF said in a statement. The injured soldiers have been hospitalized and are in recovery.

Since early 2024, a regional force of SADC, composed essentially of military elements from South Africa, Tanzania and Malawi, has been deployed in North Kivu, to counter the M23 rebels who have taken control of territories in the province.

On Thursday, violent fighting broke out between the M23 rebels and the DRC military and its allies, including the SADC, near the town of Sake, which is considered the last barrier between the rebels and Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu and a strategic, tourist and commercial city in the region.

Heavy artillery fires were heard throughout the day in the combat zone.

The M23 rebels who occupy areas in Rutshuru territory and the Masisi territory of North Kivu, have also engaged in combats against the DRX military in the town of Kanyabayonga in the Lubero territory, where a mass civilian displacement fleeing the fights has been reported.

Kanyabayonga town, where nearly 35,000 internally displaced persons are currently taking refuge, is also considered a strategic gateway that controls access to the northern part of North Kivu province and as far as the resource-rich and war-torn Ituri province.