Artillery attack on Virunga National Park’s hydro-electric power worksite

An unprecedented attack occurred yesterday on Virunga’s staff and infrastructure programs at the hydro-electric power plant at Rwanguba, in the Rutshuru District of North Kivu. The construction project, financed by the European Union, is the largest energy production project in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The attack involving artillery fire resulted in casualties within residential populations around the plant as well as significant material damage to the site’s equipment. The park authorities were able to evacuate staff in the early stages of the attack, avoiding any staff casualties.

Eyewitnesses are reporting that the fire came from positions held by the newly reformed M23 rebels, though the reason for the attack on crucial Congolese infrastructure is unknown.

Virunga National Park is at the heart of the region affected by the recent M23 rebellion. Its Mountain Gorilla sector, in the south of the park, straddles the border between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo and has been the object of intense fighting since October 2021.

On 22nd November 2021, a park ranger, Etienne Kanyaruchinya, was killed during a violent attack on a patrol post in Bukima, highlighting a marked uptick in violence against the park staff.

Olivier Mushiete, the Director General of the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN, the national agency responsible for the management of Congo’s national parks), said today: “ICCN strongly condemns this latest attack. ICCN Rangers are law enforcement officers responsible for protecting conservation areas.

Their mandate is to ensure the protection of Congolese natural heritage, which, in the case of Virunga National Park, is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Equally, non-armed park staff working on the park’s development programs carry out their work with the sole objective of building a more peaceful and prosperous future for the poorest people of North Kivu. Today’s attack will not undermine their determination to pursue their mission.”

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