The rebels of the March 23 Movement (M23) and the Rwandan soldiers backing them didn't care about the warnings coming from Addis Ababa, where an African Union (AU) summit was being held on Saturday, February 15, and Sunday, February 16. After seizing the Bukavu airport, the capital of South Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and penetrating its outskirts on Friday, they entered the heart of the city on Sunday. "It was around 6 am, and they entered triumphantly, without encountering any resistance," a resident told Le Monde on condition of anonymity. "Some people had posted themselves on the roadside to cheer them on. But we have no choice but to put on a brave face. Here, there's fear and uncertainty."
Unlike their conquest of Goma, the capital of North Kivu, on January 27, this time the Congolese insurgents, backed by the Rwandan army, seized Bukavu – a city of a million inhabitants. According to various accounts, the soldiers of the DRC's armed forces (FARDC) had mostly deserted the town the day before, heading for Uvira, further south. "Since this morning, we've been observing an intense and unusual movement of Congolese soldiers. Some are leaving the city for the south of the province," noted a young man living near the 33rd military region, the army's main command base in Bukavu, on Friday. "I saw with my own eyes at least six trucks full of soldiers and their wazalendo ("patriot" in Swahili, militia members) heading for Uvira," confirmed a young Bukavu entrepreneur.
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