Fresh fighting reported in Masisi as AU facilitators visit Goma

New fighting was reported on Wednesday in Masisi, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, as diplomatic efforts continued to address the conflict involving the M23 armed group and the Congolese government.

The developments came after three members of the five-member African Union Panel of Facilitators arrived in Goma. The delegation comprised former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi.

AU delegation holds contacts in Goma

The African Union delegation was received at the office of the M23 political branch, the Congo River Alliance. A meeting with the United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, known as MONUSCO, was also scheduled.

The latest fighting highlights the difficulty of maintaining a ceasefire in a region that has endured decades of conflict involving numerous armed groups. The fighting is also unfolding while a separate delegation works to verify the ceasefire between the Congolese armed forces and M23.

That first ceasefire-verification delegation was deployed to the region in late August. The available information does not state the outcome of its work or provide details about the latest clashes, including casualty figures or any territorial changes.

Peace agreements have failed to end fighting

M23 is described as a Rwanda-backed anti-government group that seized further areas of North Kivu and South Kivu last year. Goma and Bukavu, the provincial capitals, fell to the group after a rapid offensive and fierce battles with Congolese armed forces.

The Congolese government and M23 signed a commitment toward a ceasefire in Doha in July 2025. Separately, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda formalised a United States-brokered peace agreement in Washington in December.

Fighting continued on the ground after those accords. Further talks involving representatives of the United States, Qatar and the African Union were held in Switzerland in August.

The source information does not specify the positions of the parties following the new fighting in Masisi. It also does not identify the other two members of the African Union panel or give the result of the scheduled MONUSCO meeting.