A Kenyan soldier from East Africa’s regional force in the DR Congo has been killed in clashes between M23 rebels and pro-government armed groups, a source in the force told AFP on Wednesday.
The M23, which has captured swathes of territory in North Kivu province since 2021, is among the militias holding sway over much of the region despite the presence of peacekeepers.
The East African Community force has been deployed since the end of last year but, like the UN force in the DRC, has faced heavy criticism from Kinshasa for failing to stop the violence.
The conflict has recently intensified around Goma, North Kivu’s capital, with clashes between M23 rebels, the Congolese army and groups of pro-government “wazalendo” fighters.
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“M23 was fighting with wazalendo using mortar bombs,” the source in the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) told AFP.
A “stray bomb” landed near Kenyan soldiers tasked with protecting civilians, the source said.
“Shrapnel from the bomb injured one soldier who unfortunately succumbed later while undergoing specialised medical care in Goma.”
The source denied reports the Kenyan soldiers were ambushed, saying “no armed group has directly targeted KDF (Kenya Defence Forces) since deployment.”
Fighting came within 20 kilometres (12 miles) of Goma on Tuesday, and the army deployed a fighter plane against the rebels.
Late on Tuesday the Congolese army announced the death of an EACRF soldier, without specifying his nationality but blaming the M23.
Independent UN experts, the Kinshasa government and several Western nations including the United States and France accuse Rwanda of backing the Tutsi-led M23, which Kigali denies.
The East African force of Kenyan, Ugandan, Burundian and South Sudanese soldiers was deployed in the region in November 2022.
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