DR Congo rebel group M23 has seized a mining town critical to the supply of minerals for smartphones

The Rubaya mining region is engulfed in armed conflict. Photo: Baz Ratner/Reuters

M23 rebels have captured an African town critical to the supply of minerals for smartphones.

Rubaya, a key coltan mining town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. was captured after days of intense fighting, a rebel spokesman said.

Eastern DR Congo has been gripped by violence since the 1990s, with millions killed as fighting over national identity, ethnicity and resources led to invasions by neighboring countries and the emergence of many armed groups.

Willy Ngoma, a military spokesman for the Tutsi-led Movement 23, told Reuters that the north Kivu town was under the group's control after it targeted other armed groups in the region, including the Rwandan Liberation Force, made up of ethnic Hutus.

DR Congo army spokesman Lt. Col. Guillaume Njiquet said: “Since yesterday, we have been cross-checking whether it fell into the hands of the M23 rebels or not.”

The government has not commented.

M23 spokesman Willy Ngoma said Rubaiya was under their control. Photo: Glody Murhabazi/AFP via Getty Images Residents flee the area near the Rubaiya mines after clashes between government forces and M23 rebels in February 2024 . Photo: Obi Mukoni/AFP via Getty Images

Most of the country's mineral resources are concentrated in the east, where the security situation has deteriorated since the major rebuilding of the M23 highway in March 2022.

Rubaya contains rich deposits of tantalum, extracted from coltan, a critical energy transition. mineral used in the production of smartphones, laptops and game consoles.

The group has previously taken control of the Rubaya twice in a matter of days.

The Congolese government, UN officials and Western powers have accused Rwanda of supporting movement «M23», but she has repeatedly denied this.

Youth leader Clovis Mafare said that Rubaiya was surrounded by rebels.

«There is a massive displacement of people due to intense fighting,» he said, adding that the town's mining quarries had not been occupied.

Rabaya was previously under the control of pro-government militia group Wazalendo. .

In December 2023, the United Nations said that Wazalendo armed groups controlled sites within key mining perimeters, threatening supply chains for tin, tantalum and tungsten.

Conflicts also arose due to illegal trade. in tin and gold mined in DR Congo, which is then smuggled through Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi.

The country's government is demanding Apple provide more information about its supply chain over fears it could be contaminated conflict minerals. Apple said it has not identified any smelters or refineries in its business that finance or benefit armed groups in DR Congo or a neighboring country.