The Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC/M23) has strongly rejected a United Nations report accusing the group of causing hundreds of civilian deaths in Rutshuru Territory, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The UN Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO) released a letter on July 28, 2025, and a detailed report on August 6, 2025, accusing AFC/M23 of involvement in attacks between July 9 and 21.

The report claims these attacks led to the deaths of 169 and 319 civilians across several areas including Kanyakiri, Kigaligali, Dubai, Katanga, Lubumbashi, Kasave, Kakoro, and Busesa.

M23 dismissed the allegations as "a blatant misrepresentation of facts, a violation of impartiality, and a serious breach of UN institutional credibility," according to a statement from the group.

The group pointed out that many of the locations cited in the report lie within Virunga National Park, a protected zone where farming is forbidden.

They questioned the UN’s claim that farmers were massacred in these areas, calling it illogical since farmlands do not exist there.

"How could farmers have been massacred in nonexistent farmlands? This glaring inconsistency proves that the UNJHRO relayed unverified information, violating its investigative standards," M23 said.

They further accused the UNJHRO of relying heavily on sources aligned with the Kinshasa government and failing to verify information independently. The group criticized the use of cautious language like "allegedly" and "reportedly" in the report.

M23 blamed the report for fueling a wave of media disinformation, worsened by Reuters, which they called part of a malicious defamation campaign against the group.

The statement also claimed that the UN report was mainly based on testimonies from government-aligned groups such as Wazalendo, FDLR, RUDI URUNANA, the Rutshuru Territory Youth Council, and some named spokespersons.

"How can organisations with no presence in the liberated areas provide credible information? We call for an independent investigation and invite the organisations that issued the report to take part in it," M23 said.

The group also accused UN offices of ignoring atrocities committed by government forces and their allies.

M23 demanded an immediate withdrawal of the UN report (Ref: BCNUDH/OD/138/2025) and a public apology.

They called for an independent probe into the origins of the allegations and accountability within the UNJHRO.