Bunagana is a small town in
Rutshuru Territory,
North Kivu Province, in eastern
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...
, at the border with
Uganda
Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
. It served as the headquarters of the
March 23 Movement
The March 23 Movement (), often abbreviated as M23 and also known as the Congolese Revolutionary Army (), is a Congolese Rwandan-backed rebel paramilitary group. Based in the eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it operates ...
(M23) rebel militia in 2013 and has been occupied by M23 since 13 June 2022.
As of 13 October 2022, the rebels had consolidated their control on the area surrounding the town. The Congolese border post was operating under rebel control with ongoing commercial exchanges with Uganda.
United States
Senate Foreign Relations Committee
The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for authorizing and overseeing foreign a ...
Chair
Bob Menendez
Robert Menendez (; born January 1, 1954) is an American former politician and lawyer who represented New Jersey in the United States Senate from 2006 until his resignation in 2024. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ...
has stated that “Rwandan support for M23 rebels who are attacking civilians, UN peacekeepers, and FARDC in Eastern DRC is unacceptable” and has called for
Bureau of African Affairs
The Bureau of African Affairs (AF) is part of the United States Department of State and is charged with advising the Secretary of State on matters of Sub-Saharan Africa. The bureau was established in 1958. It is headed by the Assistant Secretar ...
to “immediately investigate and hold those responsible to account”
On 3 April 2023,
AP reported that
East African regional forces (EACRF), including a Ugandan contingent, had "regained" control of Bunagana. Ugandan contingent spokesman Capt. Kato Ahmad Hassan thanked the M23 rebels, saying “We appreciate the command of the M23 for being cooperative to the contingent, for according us a safe passage and for allowing us to occupy Bunagana.”
However, the M23 continued to co-occupy Bunagana with the EACRF.
Location
The town is located approximately , by road, northeast of
Goma
Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the North Kivu, North Kivu Province; it is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu and shares borders with the Bukumu Chiefdo ...
, the provincial capital.
Road Distance Between Bunagana & Goma With Map
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See also
*Bunagana, Uganda
Bunagana is a town in the Western Region, Uganda, Western Region of Uganda. It sits across the international border from the similarly named town of Bunagana, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Location
The town is located in extreme southwester ...
*Goma
Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the North Kivu, North Kivu Province; it is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu and shares borders with the Bukumu Chiefdo ...
* North Kivu Province
*Virunga National Park
Virunga National Park is a national park in the Albertine Rift Valley in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was created in 1925. In elevation, it ranges from in the Semliki River valley to in the Rwenzori Mountains. ...
*M23 campaign (2022–present)
The M23 campaign is an ongoing series of Offensive (military), military offensives launched by the March 23 Movement (M23), a Rwandan-backed rebel paramilitary group in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, since March 2022. In November 2021, ...
References
External links
Location of Bunagana, DRC At Google Maps
{{coord, 01, 18, 00, S, 29, 35, 42, E, display=title
Cities in the Great Rift Valley
Populated places in North Kivu
Democratic Republic of the Congo–Uganda border crossings