AFC/M23 Rebels Handover 5,000 Congolese Soldiers Captured On Battlefield

The Congo River Alliance/March 23 Movement (AFC/M23) said that they have handed over 5000 Congolese Soldiers Captured on front lines.

“More than 5,000 FARDC elements, were captured on various fronts. They have been handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),” the rebels alliance said on Sunday.

These individuals will be repatriated to Kinshasa under ICRC supervision,” the rebels alliance said in a statement released Sunday.

According to details, the handover ceremony took place on Monday, March 2, 2026, at the Rugamabo camp in North Kivu Province.

The rebels said that their action was a humanitarian gesture and respect for international principles of protection of prisoners of war.

However, the AFC/M23 accused the Kinshasa government of refusing to release members of the rebels alliance.

“Kinshasa continues to refuse the release of our comrades as well as other individuals arbitrarily detained and illegally arrested simply because of their appearance. At the same time, Kinshasa continues its ceasefire violations and has imposed a generalized war on the AFC/M23, targeting civilian populations and their property,” the rebels said.

The rebels have called upon the attention of mediators as well as national and international partners to Kinshasa’s repeated ceasefire violations and the war being imposed upon it.

“We reaffirm that the blood of Congolese people shed by Félix Tshisekedi will neither be ignored nor swept under the rug.”