M23 committed war crimes against DRC miners, trafficked gold, coltan to Rwanda: Amnesty - TimesLIVE

Amnesty International accused M23 rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) of carrying out abuses and unlawful killings of miners while trafficking critical minerals to neighbouring Rwanda, in what it said could amount to war crimes.

The Rwanda-backed rebels control dozens of artisanal mines in the DRC’s eastern North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, where tens of thousands of miners dig for minerals critical for much of the world’s electronics, including mobile phones.

Amnesty International said in its report on Monday it interviewed 26 people to document the crimes allegedly committed from January 2025 to March 2026, particularly at a coltan mine near Rubaya in North Kivu and a gold mine in Lomera in South Kivu.

Sixteen of the interviewees, including miners and civilians, said the M23 rebels or security guards at the rebel-controlled mines had tortured or mistreated them, the report said.

The rights watchdog said it documented abuses by the rebels that likely amounted to crimes under international law, including “summary killings” — a term used to describe killings outside of any legal framework — torture, arbitrary detention, forced labour and pillage.

The report detailed the killings of 18 artisanal miners at the Rubaya and Lomera mines. “Witnesses and family members reported that 10 were beaten to death, two were shot dead and six abducted miners were later found dead.”

Amnesty International also said it found evidence that gold was trafficked out of M23-controlled areas of eastern DRC into neighbouring Rwanda through smuggling routes.

The M23 and Rwandan authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

UN experts, the US and DRC government have in the past accused Rwanda of profiting off the DRC’s minerals in exchange for its support to the rebels, which Rwanda denies.

Eastern DRC, the mineral-rich part of the country, has for decades been ripped apart by violence from government forces and different armed groups, including M23, whose recent resurgence has escalated the conflict, worsening an already acute humanitarian crisis.

The Rubaya mine is a major coltan mining site that has seen numerous tragedies, including a mine collapse in March that killed at least 200 people and a landslide in January, which left about 200 people dead.

The Lomera gold mine suffered a collapse last year, trapping numerous miners.

Last year, the DRC produced more than half of the world’s tantalum – an ore derived from coltan used in smartphones, among other products – with the Rubaya mine pumping out about 15% of global production, according to Amnesty International.

The country also exported more than 28 tonnes of gold in 2025, the group said.