A civilian aircraft carrying food, medicines and other supplies from Bukavu to Minembwe was shot down on Thursday, August 27, as renewed fighting erupted around the strategic highlands of South Kivu.
Col. Fidèle Rugabo, spokesperson for the Twirwaneho forces controlling Minembwe, said the aircraft was hit while still airborne before crashing and burning completely near Bikuba. He said it was carrying mainly cargo, although a small number of passengers may also have been aboard.
“The aircraft was shot while it was still in the air. It immediately crashed and burned completely,” Rugabo told BWIZA. “We have not yet received detailed information that would allow us to provide a list of the people who were aboard. What we know is that it was carrying cargo, although there may have been a few civilians travelling to Minembwe.”
According to Rugabo, the aircraft was struck by a missile fired from the ground. The number of casualties and identities of those aboard had not been independently confirmed by the time of publication.
The incident occurred amid heavy fighting around Minembwe on Thursday, with Twirwaneho saying forces aligned with the Congolese government launched attacks from the Mulima area towards Point-Zéro, Nyaruhinga and Mukoko.
Twirwaneho said the offensive was intended to retake positions previously lost to forces allied with AFC/M23 and Twirwaneho. Fighting was reportedly continuing in the area, with the two groups saying they were resisting the offensive and expected to push government-aligned forces back.
The reported shooting down of a civilian aircraft raises serious concerns over the safety of humanitarian and civilian operations around Minembwe, an area where access to food, medicine and other essential supplies is already difficult because of insecurity and geographical isolation.
Twirwaneho and its allies also condemned what they described as continued shelling of heavily populated areas around Minembwe. They said the latest hostilities came only hours after representatives of the Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism (EJVM/MCVE+), which monitors regional security developments and ceasefire arrangements, had left Minembwe.
There was no immediate independent confirmation of responsibility for the aircraft’s destruction, and Congolese authorities had not publicly responded to the allegation at the time of publication.