The Congolese army said Tuesday it intercepted an unregistered aircraft that breached national airspace in the volatile east.
The plane was reportedly heading toward South Kivu province, a conflict zone, without obtaining the required overflight clearance, military spokesperson Sylvain Ekenge said.
The army took “appropriate measures” to protect the country’s sovereignty and secure its airspace, according to the statement released in Kinshasa.
Shortly after, M23 rebels accused the government of bombing a civilian aircraft delivering humanitarian aid to Minembwe in South Kivu.
Rebel spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka claimed the strike destroyed essential supplies such as food and medicine, escalating civilian suffering in the region.
The M23 group accused the government of repeated ceasefire violations, despite a recent peace accord signed with Rwanda in Washington.
That US-brokered deal, inked on June 27, aimed to halt decades of hostilities and restore calm to eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Kinshasa continues to accuse Kigali of backing the M23 rebels, a charge Rwanda has repeatedly denied amid mounting regional friction.
M23 now controls swathes of eastern Congo, including the key provincial cities of Goma and Bukavu, seized earlier this year.
While the rebel-aligned Alliance Fleuve Congo welcomed the peace deal as a “limited but useful step,” violence continues on the ground.
On the same day as the rebel statement, heavy clashes erupted in North Kivu’s Rutshuru territory between M23 fighters and Wazalendo militia.
The conflict, reignited in late 2021, has displaced more than 500,000 people and claimed over 3,000 lives by February, analysts report.
The latest events underscore the fragile nature of peace in eastern Congo, where agreements are often overshadowed by entrenched mistrust and violence.