Human Rights Watch report documents mass forced recruitment and detention by M23 in eastern DRC
A major investigation released by Human Rights Watch details a systematic campaign of forced recruitment and arbitrary detention by the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group in North and South Kivu. The report documents the abduction of thousands of civilians and captured combatants who were taken to 're-education' camps in Rumangabo and Tshanzu since the group captured Goma and Bukavu in early 2025. Witnesses describe inhumane conditions and summary executions for those refusing to join M23 front lines.