More than 200 people were killed in a collapse at the Rubaya coltan mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo this week, according to rebel-appointed provincial authorities who said the final toll is still being verified.
Lumumba Kambere Muyisa, spokesperson for the rebel-appointed governor in the province where the mine operates, told Reuters the collapse happened on Wednesday.
The site produces about 15% of the world’s coltan, a key source of tantalum used in electronics, aerospace components and gas turbines.
Locals dig manually at Rubaya for a few dollars per day, and the area has been under the control of the AFC/M23 rebel group since 2024.
Muyisa said miners, children and market women were among the victims, with around 20 injured people receiving treatment in nearby health facilities.
He said heavy rains left the ground fragile and caused it to give way while people were inside the pit.
An adviser to the governor, speaking anonymously because he was not authorised to brief the media, said at least 227 deaths had been confirmed.
The United Nations has accused AFC/M23 of plundering Rubaya’s mineral wealth to fund its insurgency, an allegation Rwanda denies. The rebels expanded their hold on mineral-rich territory in eastern Congo last year during a rapid advance.
At least 70 people are missing and two bodies have been recovered after a boat carrying migrants capsi...
A landslide has left one man missing while an apartment block has collapsed in Russia’s southern region of Dage...
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran's energy and transport infrastructure in a social media post containing expletives on Sunday (5 Apr...
Fuel leaked at Russia’s Baltic Sea port of Primorsk, while the NORSI oil refinery caught fire following drone attacks, Russian authorities sa...
Israeli airstrikes on the town of Kfar Hatta in Lebanon have reportedly killed six people and injured two, acco...
More than 200 people died on Tuesday in a landslide triggered by heavy rains at the Rubaya coltan mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the country's mines ministry said on Wednesday.
The military spokesperson for the M23 rebel movement, Willy Ngoma, was killed in an army drone strike in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo early on Tuesday (24 February), according to a regional diplomat, a senior rebel figure and a Western adviser to the government.
Escalating clashes in South Kivu’s highlands are sending a rising flow of wounded to Fizi’s small general hospital, where staff warn they are running out of space and supplies as the conflict expands across remote areas.
More than 200 people were killed this week when a landslide caused part of the Rubaya coltan mine to collapse in North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, local officials said on Sunday (1 February). The disaster struck a rebel-controlled mining area during the rainy season.
One U.S. crew member has been rescued after two American warplanes were downed over Iran and the Gulf, as the search continues for a missing pilot, while President Donald Trump has given Tehran 48 hours to agree to a deal to end the war.
The U.N. Security Council is expected to vote next week on a Bahraini resolution to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and protect commercial shipping, diplomats said on Friday, amid opposition from China to any authorisation of force.
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran's energy and transport infrastructure in a social media post containing expletives on Sunday (5 April), as he seperately gave Iran a deadline of Tuesday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The family of the late Virginia Giuffre have urged King Charles III to meet survivors of sexual abuse during his upcoming state visit to the United States.
Senegal has taken steps to curb government spending by banning non-essential foreign travel for ministers, as rising global oil prices place increasing pressure on the country’s finances.
At least 70 people are missing and two bodies have been recovered after a boat carrying migrants capsized in the Mediterranean Sea, an Italian NGO said on Sunday (5 April).
Fuel leaked at Russia’s Baltic Sea port of Primorsk, while the NORSI oil refinery caught fire following drone attacks, Russian authorities said on Sunday (5 April).
The family of the late Virginia Giuffre have urged King Charles III to meet survivors of sexual abuse during his upcoming state visit to the United States.
British police have arrested a fourth person in connection with an arson attack on ambulances belonging to a Jewish community charity. The arrest took place at a London court on Saturday, where three other suspects were already appearing.
Senegal has taken steps to curb government spending by banning non-essential foreign travel for ministers, as rising global oil prices place increasing pressure on the country’s finances.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment