The Democratic Republic of Congo’s government said on Sunday it feared “at least 200 dead” in a “massive” landslide that struck a militia-held mine in the country’s east.
Since its resurgence in 2021, the M23 armed group has seized vast tracts of the DRC’s resource-rich east, capturing the Rubaya mine in North Kivu province in April 2024 with Rwanda’s help.
The mine produces 15 to 30 percent of the world’s supply of coltan, a key component in the production of electronics such as laptops and mobile phones.
Thousands of artisanal miners work daily in precarious conditions in Rubaya’s pits, most equipped with simple shovels and rubber boots.
A “massive landslide likely left at least 200 dead”, the country’s communications ministry said in a statement to AFP on Sunday, expressing its “deep dismay” over the tragedy.
