Militia atrocities in eastern DRC highlight dangerous ties with national army

In the volatile Rutshuru territory of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a militia group operating with the explicit backing of the national armed forces (FARDC) has been implicated in a wave of horrific violence against the local population. Investigations into the group’s activities reveal a pattern of summary executions, torture, and the systemic abduction of women, many of whom have been forced into sexual slavery.

The group in question, the Collectif des mouvements pour le changement-Forces de défense du peuple (CMC-FDP), functions as a prominent member of the Wazalendo (“patriotes”). This loose coalition of armed factions is currently being utilized by the Congolese military as a proxy force in the ongoing struggle against the Rwanda-backed Mouvement du 23 mars (M23). The CMC-FDP maintains a significant presence in the Bukombo region, an area largely under the control of the M23.

Civilians residing in and around Bukombo find themselves caught in a deadly pincer between the brutality of the M23 and the predatory actions of the CMC-FDP. In isolated zones where the CMC-FDP operates with near-total impunity, the daily reality for inhabitants is one of constant terror. While the central government frequently and rightly denounces the crimes of the M23, there is a conspicuous silence regarding the similar atrocities committed by the Wazalendo. By failing to hold these fighters accountable, the authorities are effectively endorsing these war crimes and neglecting their fundamental duty to protect the citizenry.

Between June and December 2025, the CMC-FDP carried out targeted attacks, often under the cover of night or in areas where M23 presence was thin. In several instances, fighters sought revenge against families suspected of having ties to the M23. These actions, which include the deliberate targeting of non-combatants, represent clear violations of international humanitarian law.

Direct testimonies collected from survivors between March and April 2026 paint a chilling picture of the group’s methods. These accounts include reports of summary executions and the deliberate burning of residential homes in the region.

Sexual slavery and systemic abuse of women

The use of sexual violence as a weapon of war is a recurring theme in the CMC-FDP’s operations. One young woman recounted how she was abducted in May 2025 after her husband joined the M23. She was held captive for three months and forced to become the “wife” of a commander. She described being raped repeatedly under the threat of death and witnessing other women held in similar conditions.

Another 22-year-old survivor reported being taken to the Mudugudu base in Bukombo in June 2025. She was also forced into a coerced marriage with a combatant and witnessed other civilians being held in underground detention cells for ransom. Such acts of hostage-taking and sexual enslavement constitute grave war crimes and violate the basic human rights to physical integrity and freedom from torture.

In response to these allegations, the CMC-FDP leadership has issued denials, claiming a commitment to discipline and human rights. However, the scale of the abuses suggests that the group’s hierarchy is either directly involved or complicit by failing to prevent the violence perpetrated by their subordinates.

Campaigns of physical violence and displacement

The violence often extends to the most vulnerable. In November 2025, during a skirmish in Mashango, fighters discovered a group of eight people hiding in a banana grove. Despite one fighter noting that a woman in the group was heavily pregnant, the militia proceeded to loot the family’s belongings and burn their home. Her husband was subsequently murdered with machetes. The woman was forced to give birth alone in the forest shortly after the attack.

Another pregnant woman reported being beaten and stabbed by CMC-FDP fighters in July 2025 because her husband had joined the M23. The assault resulted in a miscarriage the following day. These targeted attacks on family members of opposing fighters highlight a strategy of collective punishment.

Retaliatory killings and summary executions

The group’s campaign of revenge has left many families shattered. In November 2025, in the village of Kyahemba, a commander and six fighters entered a home and accused a mother of allowing her 15-year-old son to be recruited by the M23. Her husband was then shot three times in the chest in front of their young children.

A similar account was provided by a woman named Elisabeth*, who described how former neighbors, now fighting for the CMC-FDP, arrived at her home. They accused her husband of collaborating with the M23 before shooting him in the chest and genitals and looting their livestock and household goods.

Extortion under the guise of protection

The CMC-FDP has also established a system of illegal taxation known as la salama (“sleep peacefully”), where residents are forced to pay for their own “protection.” One man, Innocent*, reported being beaten and having three houses burned after he was unable to meet the militia’s demands for money. He had already paid $300 to the group following his son’s recruitment into the M23.

Another woman, Justine*, was targeted because of her Tutsi appearance. She was whipped and bound by fighters who demanded information on her husband’s whereabouts. She only managed to escape when one of the combatants took pity on her infant child and allowed her to flee.

State support for militia operations

The integration of groups like the CMC-FDP into the national defense strategy was formalized in May 2023 through legislation creating the Reserve armée de la défense. This has allowed the FARDC to provide these militias with significant financial and logistical support. Reports indicate that the Congolese state provides approximately $4 million per month to Wazalendo groups.

Internal government documents from North Kivu suggest that the CMC-FDP alone received over 100,000 rounds of ammunition and 100 rockets from the FARDC between late 2023 and early 2024. Furthermore, the group’s commander-in-chief, Dominique “Domi” Kamanzi Ndaruhutse, was sanctioned by the European Union in July 2024 for his role in serious human rights violations. Ndaruhutse has a long history of militia activity and has been linked to the FDLR, a group containing remnants of the forces responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

The continued collaboration between the Congolese army and the CMC-FDP remains a major obstacle to peace and security in the region. There is an urgent need for the authorities in the DRC to cease all support for these abusive groups and ensure that those responsible for war crimes are brought to justice.

*Pseudonyms have been used to protect the identity and safety of the survivors.