The UN human rights office has accused Rwanda-backed M23 rebels of executing three children in Bukavu, eastern DRC. The boys, aged 15 or younger, were armed and killed for refusing to surrender their weapons after M23 captured the city. The situation escalates amid decades of conflict involving various regional armies and insurgent groups, resulting in millions of deaths and displacements. Accusations against Rwanda for backing M23 have been denied, while investigations into broader human rights abuses by all parties remain ongoing, emphasizing the dire humanitarian crisis in the region.
We have confirmed cases of summary execution of children by M23 after they entered the city of Bukavu last week. We are also aware that children were in possession of weapons.
Decades-long fighting among regional armies and rebels in the mineral-rich eastern DRC has killed and displaced millions. Fighting escalated last month when M23 fighters captured parts of North Kivu and advanced towards South Kivu.
M23 is the latest in a string of Tutsi-led insurgent groups to have operated in the region since a 2003 deal that was meant to end the wars that had killed 6 million people.
The DRC, the US and others have accused Rwanda of backing the group, which it denies. The UN has in the past accused the Congolese army and opposing militias of recruiting children.
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