Fighting erupted in Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday when unidentified armed men attacked Chanzu Villon on the night of November 7-8, South East of Rutshuru territory, in North Kivu province.
Confirmed several sources in the region have underlined that the fighting erupted at around 11 p.m with heavily armed attacks from Virunga National Park, simultaneously attacking the villages of Chanzu and Runyonyi.
Residents claim they have not yet identified the perpetrators, but some have suspected they were M23 fighters, although neither side had claimed responsibility for the attack.
Heavy and light weapons were said to have been fired, and the fighting extended all night until the early hours of Monday, causing great panic among the population, sources in the region said.
A number of residents on social media have been seen fleeing to the Bunagana border between Uganda and the DRC.
Some of the residents of Bunagana say that the area of Cyanzu had already been captured by armed militants at around 4pm.
Cyanzu and Runyoni were known to be the last strongholds of the M23 rebels in its war with the FARDC in 2013 and were also part of General Sultan Makenga’s hideout in November 2012.
