Goma, Apr. 12, (dpa/GNA) – Tensions remained high in Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday after heavy fighting was reported on the city’s outskirts on Friday night.

Local eyewitnesses reported an attack by Wazalendo, a group of Congolese rebel fighters that are supported by the country’s army, on the M23 rebels which have controlled the city since January.

Robert Kamyuka, a shopkeeper in Goma, told dpa that there was a continuous exchange of gunfire and bombing last night.

“Today there is high tension in Goma, with heavily-armed M23 rebels patrolling all the streets and positioning themselves at some strategic places. It was terrible last night. I have not opened my shop today. All shops are closed,” he said.

According to Pecos Kilihoshi, executive director of the Global Refugees Leadership Forum, the Wazalendo – with members of the government forces – launched the attack from the villages of Ndosho, Kyeshero and Nyiragongo.

He said: “The heavy exchange of gunfire and bombing plunged the population in the city into panic. On Saturday morning, most of the city residents remained in their homes, fearing to come out.”

Police officer Thomas Longwa, speaking in hiding over the phone, said there were casualties from both sides although no official death toll has been released.

According to the World Food Programme, which has been administering humanitarian aid, the conflict between armed groups, “most prominently the 23 March Movement (M23), and the Congolese Government’s Armed Force (FARDC), has been ongoing relentlessly over the last months, killing more than 7,000 people in 2025 alone and leading to a record level of 7.8 million internally displaced persons (IDPs).”

Congo has been plagued by conflict for more than three decades, with more than 100 armed groups competing with the government for power and control of the mineral-rich nation.

GNA

PDC