UVIRA, SOUTH KIVU — The strategic port city of Uvira has descended into a state of lawlessness following the sudden withdrawal of the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC) and its allied M23 and Twirwaneho forces. The pullout, which concluded in the early hours of Sunday, January 18, 2026, has left a power vacuum that local witnesses say is being filled by pro-government Wazalendo militias and the national army (FARDC), sparking immediate reports of systematic violence and targeted destruction.
A Precarious Withdrawal
The departure of the AFC-led coalition comes after weeks of intense diplomatic pressure and threats of sanctions from the international community, aimed at de-escalating the conflict that has gripped Eastern DR Congo. However, observers on the ground warn that the transition was poorly managed.
While the AFC’s initial capture of Uvira was reportedly marked by a lack of civilian reprisals, the aftermath of their exit has been characterized by immediate volatility. Critics argue that international mediators failed to establish a “buffer zone” or a peacekeeping presence to prevent retaliatory violence.
Systematic Looting and Ethnic Tensions
Within hours of the withdrawal, “Wazalendo” (Patriot) militias entered the city center. Reports indicate that the arrival of these groups triggered a wave of “malicious destruction” and “systematic looting.”
The violence appears to have a distinct ethnic dimension. Witnesses report that homes and churches belonging to the Banyamulenge community—an ethnic Tutsi group often caught in the crossfire of regional tensions—are being indiscriminately targeted.
Beyond private residences, the city’s infrastructure has sustained heavy damage. Key public facilities, including the High Court of Uvira and several parastatal company offices, have been ransacked.
Humanitarian Crisis and Abductions
The security collapse has prompted a fresh humanitarian exodus. Fearing for their lives amidst death threats circulating on social media, hundreds of Banyamulenge families have fled Uvira, seeking refuge in the surrounding hills or across the border.
The situation turned even more dire this morning with reports of extrajudicial abductions. Local sources confirm that Pastor Budederi and his wife were forcibly taken from their home by unidentified armed men. Their current whereabouts remain unknown, sparking fears of a targeted campaign against community leaders.
Context: The Expanding Conflict in Eastern DRC
The crisis in Uvira is the latest chapter in a decades-long conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The AFC, a political-military movement launched by former election chief Corneille Nangaa, has recently integrated the M23 insurgency, expanding the conflict’s reach from North Kivu into South Kivu.
The Congolese government has increasingly relied on the Wazalendo—an umbrella term for various community-based “self-defense” militias—to bolster the FARDC. However, these groups are frequently accused of human rights abuses and fueling the very ethnic divisions they claim to defend.
As of Sunday afternoon, the international community has yet to issue a formal response to the reports of looting and abductions in Uvira.
