Volker Türk said to Human Rights Council that the investigation and the analysis undertaken by his office, Ohchrhad revealed “an apparent total contempt for the protection of civilians during and after military operations”.
The Ochch’s mission of investigation in the DRC Orientale is also investigating other alleged violations of international humanitarian law, “many of which can constitute war crimes,” he said.
Arbitrary arrests
After capturing cities and villages at the beginning of 2025, the rebels supported by the M23 arbitrarily arrested the police and a large number of other civilians, including children, reported the United Nations Human Rights Office.
According to witnesses, the captured people were and are still held under “inhuman conditions”, and many have been recruited by force in the ranks of the M23.
The mission is also investigating alleged arbitrary arrests and the forced disappearance of alleged supporters of M23 by the military intelligence branch of the DRC armed forces.
Extrajudicial killings
The OHCHR also indicated that members of the M23 had made a summary and extrajudicial executions, which probably constitute war crimes, said Türk.
The mission is also investigating summary executions presumed by members of the DRC armed forces and Wazalendo militias supported by the DRC.
UN human rights are also investigating death threat reports, detention and other reprisals against human rights defenders, journalists and civil society members perceived as criticism of the M23; Including the alleged murders of at least two activists.
Sexual violence
The mission has received reports on the “horrible” use of sexual violence by all parties as a means of reprisals against communities, parents of perceived adversaries and people from other ethnic groups, said Türk.
In northern and southern Kivu, almost 40% of survivors of sexual and gender violence are children. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef) estimated that during the most intense phase of the conflict, a child was raped every 30 minutes.
Türk called on “all the parties to the conflict immediately committed to a ceasefire and to resume negotiations, and to respect the international law of humanitarian rights and human rights”.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
