DRC: RSF Investigation Reveals M23 Tortured Journalists in Shipping Containers

Last updated: 22 September 2026

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) published a major investigation on March 24, 2026 revealing that the M23 armed group — a Rwanda-backed rebel movement that controls parts of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo — has used sealed shipping containers as de facto detention centres, holding civilians and at least two journalists in conditions RSF describes as shockingly inhumane and degrading. The investigation is based on first-hand survivor testimony, satellite photography, and images gathered from social media.

"The Valley of Death": Survivors Describe the Containers

Former detainees described being crammed into shipping containers measuring barely ten square metres, with no light, no ventilation, and no access to basic sanitation. In one account, dozens of people were held simultaneously in a single container for several days. "This place is the valley of death," one survivor told RSF. "Back there, you're somewhere between life and death. There are no visits, no treatment fit for a human being and you're tortured."

At least two journalists were among those detained in these conditions. RSF documented the cases of media workers who were intercepted by M23 forces while reporting in areas under the group's control in eastern DRC. The journalists were held without charge or access to legal representation, subjected to interrogation and physical mistreatment, and denied contact with their families or colleagues.

M23's Expanding Control and the Media Environment

The M23 movement has expanded its territorial control in eastern DRC significantly since 2022, capturing major urban centres including Goma and Bukavu. As the group's control has expanded, independent journalism in the affected areas has become increasingly dangerous. RSF has documented systematic efforts by M23 to control information flows in the territory it occupies, including the harassment, detention, and expulsion of journalists.

Detaining journalists in shipping containers without charge, subjecting them to torture, and using these conditions as a tool of intimidation against the press constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and press freedom. The international community must hold M23 and its backers accountable.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF), March 24, 2026

Calls for International Accountability

RSF is calling on the United Nations, the African Union, and international governments to urgently investigate the use of shipping containers as detention facilities, to secure the release of all journalists and other civilians currently held in such conditions, and to ensure that M23 commanders responsible face accountability under international law. The organisation is also calling on Rwanda to use its influence to immediately end this form of detention.

Source: Reporters Without Borders (RSF)