Warring factions in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo are committing atrocities that violate international law, Amnesty International said in a new report. The group documented systematic gang rapes, summary killings, abductions and torture carried out by both the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels and the pro-government Wazalendo coalition, warning that these crimes could amount to war crimes. The report adds to mounting pressure on Kinshasa and Kigali to hold their forces accountable amid escalating violence across North and South Kivu.

The report paints a grim picture of life for women and girls in particular, who face a climate of relentless sexual violence. Fourteen cases of rape were documented in the first half of 2025 alone. Survivors described being taken to rebel camps or attacked in their own homes. One woman was gang raped by M23 fighters after being abducted outside Goma, while another was raped by Congolese army soldiers during their retreat from Bukavu in February. A survivor of a Wazalendo assault recounted how she was tied between two trees while six fighters raped her in turn. She later told Amnesty: “Let them be punished so they don’t do such acts to someone else.” Another victim explained that since her assault, the sight of anyone in uniform triggers terror: “When I see someone in uniform, I’m traumatized… it’s like a heart palpitation.”

Killings and abductions are also a persistent feature of the conflict. Amnesty documented five cases of summary executions carried out by M23 fighters, including the murder of a father and son in South Kivu. Hospitals, once sanctuaries for the wounded, have been repeatedly attacked—six incidents in Goma alone—where patients were abducted or detained. Civil society activists, journalists and community leaders have been systematically targeted, either tortured, disappeared, or executed. Among the disappeared is youth activist Aloys Bigirumwami, who vanished in May after being taken by suspected M23 members. One detainee recalled being interrogated nightly about his civic work, describing how fighters beat him with whips and slapped him until his nose bled.

Amnesty’s findings carry heavy political weight at a moment when peace talks brokered by Qatar have produced a tentative “declaration of principles” between the Congolese government and M23. The rights group urged Doha to use its influence to push M23 to end abductions and enforced disappearances, while calling on the United States and other international partners to press President Felix Tshisekedi’s government to hold Wazalendo fighters accountable. Regional Director Tigere Chagutah declared: “For the women of eastern DRC, nowhere is safe; they are raped in their homes, in the fields, or camps where they seek shelter. The world must say enough.”

As the conflict drags on, the human cost continues to mount. Civilians are trapped between warring factions, enduring a cycle of predation that leaves little hope of safety. Amnesty’s report underscores the urgency of accountability, warning that without genuine political will in Kinshasa and Kigali, and stronger international intervention, eastern Congo risks sliding deeper into catastrophe. Far from isolated atrocities, the abuses documented reflect a pattern of systemic violence that has become normalized in one of the world’s longest and most neglected humanitarian crises.