UNICEF Staff Among Three Killed in Deadly Drone Strikes in Goma, DRC

Carine Buisset, a French national and UNICEF staff member in Goma City, North Kivu Province, was confirmed dead alongside two others following drone strikes carried out by the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and allied forces early Wednesday morning.

According to residents, the strikes hit the Himbi area around 4:00 a.m., targeting structures believed to house leaders of the March 23 Movement/Alliance Fleuve Congo (M23/AFC) rebels, including Bertrand Bisimwa, Corneille Nangaa Yobeluo, and former President Joseph Kabila Kabange. A second strike followed at 4:12 a.m. Buisset was killed in an apartment rented by Christine Guinot, UNICEF’s head of security in the DRC, who was absent at the time. 

Another apartment belonging to a Belgian national identified as Pascal, manager of a Toyota dealership in Goma, was also destroyed. Both apartments were near the family residence of former President Kabila. UNICEF had not released an official statement at the time of reporting. M23/AFC spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka condemned the strikes, accusing the Kinshasa government of targeting UN and EU personnel.

“Drone attacks are currently being carried out against the city of Goma by the terrorist regime of Kinshasa, well beyond the front lines. This act of aggression constitutes an intolerable provocation targeting a densely populated urban area and deliberately endangering thousands of innocent civilians. Among the victims, Carine Buisset, a prominent and respected UNICEF staff member, tragically lost her life,” Kanyuka said.

M23 rebels’ president Bertrand Bisimwa also alleged that the drones used in the strikes were supplied to the Kinshasa government by China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council. “These drones that spread death among the innocent are supplied to the Kinshasa regime by China, the same country that demands respect for the ceasefire in the DRC. Let us call for an end to this hypocrisy,” Bisimwa said.

FARDC has not issued an official statement, but Jules Mulumba, spokesperson for Wazalendo militia groups allied with FARDC, claimed the strikes targeted rebel positions and mocked the M23/AFC. He said three enemy drones had been destroyed in Minembwe, South Kivu Province. “Yet I had told you: the soil and the subsoil belong to the Congolese state. The DRC has the capacity to defend its airspace and attack threats at their source,” Mulumba said.

The strikes in Goma, a city under M23/AFC control since late January 2025, come amid ongoing conflict in North and South Kivu Provinces. On Tuesday, clashes were reported in Mukole, Walikale Territory, and FARDC claimed to have shot down two drones allegedly belonging to the Rwanda Defence Force in Minembwe. Since its resurgence in 2022 under Bertrand Bisimwa and General Sultan Makenga, the M23/AFC rebels have repeatedly accused the government of ceasefire violations. 

The Congolese government has accused Rwanda of backing the rebels, allegations denied by Kigali and the group. The M23/AFC claims its objective is to fight corruption, xenophobia, and discrimination within the country’s political leadership. Their early 2025 offensive across eastern DRC captured several towns and raised fears of a broader regional conflict.