SUMMARY
The Sud Kivu Province in the DR Congo (Zaire) is an area affected by many different but also intertwined conflicts. Many of them have been explained by the question of identity: are Rwandophones – i.e. speakers of Kinyarwanda and Kirundi legitimate members of the Congolese nation? Ethnic groups in the area, claiming to be autochtone to the land, have perceived Rwandophones as foreigners. Between the same communities, conflicts have arisen between agriculturalists and pastoralists, especially during the transhumance period (the seasonal movement of people with their livestock). Livestock has often caused damage to the farmers’ land; thereby conflicts have evolved over the access to and control of land. Furthermore, local conflicts over the local governance have been intermingled into the mix. At the same time, the different ethnic groups have supported and joined different armed groups and militias over the years supporting different sides in the many conflicts over governmental power that have been ongoing in the DR Congo (Zaire). Similarly, different Congolese armed groups have also at times allied themselves with Rwanda, Burundi or different rebel groups challenging the Rwandan or Burundian governments. All of this has led to re-emerging conflicts between different armed groups in the region.
The conflict between AFP-Gutabara and FABB, CNPSC and should be understood in this context. FABB and CNPSC were a coalition including armed groups from the Babembe and Banyindu and Bafulero communities, all considered as autochtone to the region. AFP-Gutabara was a militia from the Banyamulenge community perceived as rwandophone and foreigners to the region.
Both sides offered some justification for their actions. In public statements, FABB spokesperson Aimable Nabulizi stated that their joint attack with CNPSC was aimed at dislodging Twigwaneho from several villages in Minembwe. The coalition accused AFP-Gutabara of occupying their traditional territory, while the Banyamulenge militia often framed its actions as defensive in the face of ethnically motivated attacks. Accusations also circulated that Burundian refugees supported FABB, CNPSC in Fizi territory, further fueling tension.
The violence was characterized by village raids, ambushes, and attacks on civilian areas. The conflict peaked on 8 December 2023, when the FABB, CNPSC coalition attacked several villages in Minembwe, including Biziba, Irumba, Kivumu, Ruhemba, and Rutigita. These coordinated assaults reportedly resulted in the deaths of around thirty individuals, both fighters and civilians. Thousands of residents fled to Kabingo and Muzinda with their cattle, and daily life in Minembwe came to a standstill, schools and markets shut down in fear of continued violence.
The fighting remained localized in Fizi territory, with all incidents taking place in the mountainous regions of South Kivu, especially around Minembwe. While the Congolese army and Burundian forces reportedly intervened to repel the December 2023 attacks, the conflict between AFP-Gutabara and FABB, CNPSC persisted at the local level and ended with AFP-Gutabara joining the AFC alliance on 15 December 2023. After this date the violence between these groups are coded to the broader AFC - VDP dyad.
The non-state conflict between AFP-Gutabara and the coalition of FABB and CNPSC is first included in UCDP data in 2023. On 8 December of that year, coordinated attacks by FABB and CNPSC fighters targeted several villages in Minembwe, South Kivu, resulting in around thirty deaths. The assault was reportedly intended to expel AFP-Gutabara fighters from the area.
