DR Congo: Intensification of Violence in the North Kivu and South Kivu Provinces Situation report #1, 3 February 2025
This is an OCHA DRC report produced in collaboration with humanitarian partners. It covers the period from 28 January to 2 February 2025. It builds on the flash updates produced since 21 January 2025.
HIGHLIGHTS
• At least 900 people have been killed and around 2,880 injured in recent fighting in Goma and its surroundings. Many bodies still lie in the streets in Goma.
• High risk of mpox spread in the city of Goma.
• Several displacement sites in Nyiragongo territory have been destroyed and abandoned.
NORTH KIVU
SITUATION OVERVIEW IN GOMA
Nearly all displacement sites along the Kanyaruchinya axis have been destroyed and emptied of their occupants. Water facilities, latrines, and health structures have also been damaged. Displaced persons who had fled to Goma are now returning to their home areas along the Kibumba-Rutshuru axis.
Many criminal incidents have been reported in Goma. On 1 February, local sources reported several incidents of looting and vehicle hijacking, involving the Provincial Health Division (DPS) and a UNHCR partner NGO. A vehicle belonging to another NGO was also stolen by armed men on 2 February. No violence was reported following these incidents.
In many neighbourhoods of Goma city, economic activities have been gradually resuming. Some shops and businesses that were looted are assessing damages and starting cleanup. Yet, schools and universities remain closed, and the internet is still down. The border at La Grande Barrière with Gisenyi, Rwanda, has reopened, and movement across the border has been ongoing.
Significant damage is observed at the border area La Petite Barrière in the Mapendo neighbourhood, where many homes were damaged during the clashes. According to local sources, armed groups have taken advantage of the deteriorating context to commit looting and rapes in the neighbourhoods of Majengo,
Virunga, Birere, as well as around the airport and the Instigo roundabout. Several humanitarian organizations warehouses have been looted. These include WFP, ICRC, MSF, UNHCR, and WHO. NGOs Medair, Concern, Action Against Hunger, and Oxfam were also looted on 28 and 29 January.
According to a rapid assessment conducted by health partners and the Provincial Health Division of North Kivu, around 2,880 injured people have been admitted to various health facilities in Goma between 26 and 30 January. Many facilities are overwhelmed, with urgent needs for medicines, fuel, and surgical supplies.
With support from the ICRC, the Congolese Red Cross has been actively recovering bodies from the streets in Goma. According to WHO, at least 900 bodies have been recovered from the streets as of 31 January, not including those already stocked in morgues. WHO has raised concerns about the risk of the massive spread of mpox, cholera, and measles due to displaced populations and the lack of medical care.
Humanitarian access On 31 January, OCHA conducted an assessment mission along the Goma-Sake axis, displacement sites in Bulengo and Lushagala, with the participation of NGOs Handicap International, Première Urgence International, Action Contre la Faim (ACF), and INSO. The mission reported 4,500 newly displaced households registered in the Bulengo IDP site as of 24 January, adding to the 38,445 who have been residing on the site since 2023, bringing the total to nearly 43,000 households. The Lushagala IDP site, which has been home to over 20,000 households since 2023, has also received new waves of displaced persons from Minova, Masisi, Kiroshe, and Bweremana, as well as from the Lushagala Extension and Rusayo 1 and 2 sites. The situation in these sites remains relatively stable, with no presence of armed men observed.
On 1 February, OCHA conducted another assessment mission in displacement sites and collective sites around Goma, along the Goma-Kanyaruchinya-Kibati axis. The mission found that all three sites visited,
Don Bosco, Bushagara, and EP Mbogo, had been destroyed and abandoned. No armed presence was reported in the area. Some remaining residents were preparing to leave for Kiwanja and Kibati. In Bushagara, the site was also emptied and destroyed, and the former residents headed to Goma.
No security incidents have been reported in these sites since 26 January, except for a few cases of theft reported at the headquarters of some partner NGOs, including Alima, INTERSOS, AVSI, and Umoja in Action.
Protection
At least 19 unaccompanied children and three separated children have been identified among the displaced persons still present in the EP Mboga and Don Bosco sites. Sources reported high risks of gender-based violence (GBV) due to overcrowding, particularly at the Don Bosco site. Elderly people among the displaced and those with limited mobility require special attention and care as the return of IDPs is being prepared.
Additionally, unexploded ordnances are reported in the courtyard of Kyeshero Hospital in Goma, in several hospitals, NGO offices, guesthouses of international NGOs and many other places.
As of 24 January, 143 confirmed cases of mpox were receiving treatment in various centres in the health zones of Goma, Karisimbi, and Nyiragongo. By 30 January, only 15 remained in isolation, as many fled the treatment centres, and many were looted.
Access to water remains a challenge. Many people in Goma city continue to draw water directly from Lake Kivu, while others queue to fetch water at the water station along the Plage du peuple in the Himbi neighbourhood. Water trucks are also operational in the city. Electricity was restored on 30 January after a five-day outage, notably with support from the ICRC. Power restoration allowed the Kyeshero water pump to resume operations, supplying several neighbourhoods and hospitals in Goma.