Violence surges in South Kivu as displacement grows

With hostilities subsiding in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)'s occupied Goma City in North Kivu Province, UN humanitarians said on Friday that violence in South Kivu Province is increasing and triggering mass displacement.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said a bombing in South Kivu injured three civilians and damaged power infrastructure in the town of Nyabibwe, about 60 kilometers north of the provincial capital, Bukavu.

Continued clashes in South Kivu are triggering mass displacement and causing civilian casualties. Thousands of people are on the move, with many fleeing active combat zones towards Bukavu, which is under threat of a rebel attack from the March 23 Movement (M23) armed group.

UN humanitarians said they and their partners are assessing conditions in and around Goma, where hundreds of thousands of people are still on the move.

However, the office said its partners reported that three non-governmental organization (NGO) workers were killed in a bombing on Wednesday in North Kivu Province, forcing the suspension of food and agriculture assistance in the area.

According to OCHA estimates, nearly 33,000 people have returned to villages in Nyiragongo Territory, immediately northeast of Goma.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that many medical facilities in North Kivu were destroyed in earlier fighting, while others struggled to restart operations. Cancer, diabetes, hypertension, mental health and other routine services are also affected as medicines have run out, and health workers are either absent or overburdened.

The threat of infectious diseases has multiplied. Cholera, malaria, measles, meningitis, mpox and tuberculosis are among the contagious threats in the area. Nearly 600 suspected cases of cholera and 14 deaths were reported in North Kivu between January 1 and 27.

The water supply in Goma was disrupted but has been partially restored in some areas, leading people to rely on water from Lake Kivu and heightening the risk of cholera.

WHO deployed emergency medical supplies, hygiene and water treatment kits, and tents to increase hospital capacity by 1,000 beds. Supplies are being depleted rapidly, and more resources are urgently needed.