By Micah Jonah, February 24, 2026
Willy Ngoma, the military spokesperson for the M23 rebel group, was killed in a Congolese army drone strike near the strategic Rubaya coltan mine in North Kivu. The strike occurred around 3a.m. local time, following several days of sustained army drone attacks.
Rubaya is a key financial hub for M23, producing about 15% of the world’s coltan supply. Heavy fighting around the mine has displaced hundreds of families.
The killing comes despite ongoing Qatar-mediated ceasefire efforts, which established a joint monitoring mechanism with the U.S. and African Union as observers. Ngoma had been under EU sanctions since December 2022.
M23, reportedly backed by Rwanda, controls large areas of North and South Kivu. The Congolese army recently recaptured the city of Uvira, and the UN deployed a team to assess security, support ceasefire implementation.
