A precision drone strike conducted by the Congolese armed forces (FARDC) killed Willy Ngoma, the high-profile military spokesperson for the M23 rebel group, and at least nine others on Tuesday. The operation targeted a farm area near the strategic mining town of Rubaya in North Kivu, a region that produces significant portions of the world's coltan supply.
Intelligence and military sources confirmed that the pre-dawn strike narrowly missed M23’s top military commander, Sultani Makenga. While Ngoma’s death has been widely verified by U.N. officials and regional diplomats, the M23 leadership has yet to issue a formal confirmation, though senior official Bertrand Bisimwa posted a cryptic message on X regarding "communion with our heroes in silence."
The strike marks a severe blow to the Rwanda-backed insurgency and a major escalation in a conflict that has already displaced over 7 million people. Rubaya, where the attack occurred, is a critical economic hub that M23 has controlled since their sweeping offensive in early 2025. The Congolese government recently offered mining assets in this area to the United States under a new minerals cooperation framework, further raising the stakes of territorial control.
"He died while defending the rights of his own people," an anonymous M23 source told Amjambo Africa, while M23 political spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka accused Kinshasa of triggering a "total war across all front lines." The Congolese government has not officially commented, but the use of attack drones highlights the army’s increasing reliance on high-tech warfare to neutralise rebel leadership.
International observers fear the assassination will collapse a fragile, Qatar-mediated ceasefire intended to halt the rebels' advance toward Goma. Ngoma, who was under U.N. and European Union sanctions for undermining peace in the region, was the public face of the movement.