DRC: Deadly hospital shooting condemned

On the evening of 4 April, about 20 armed AFC men entered the Kyeshero compound searching for former combatants taking refuge inside—they had not wanted to leave for several weeks. MSF teams supporting the Intensive Nutritional Treatment Unit witnessed the gunmen shooting outside the wards. The shooting killed one person and wounded three others. Two hospital staff members were also severely beaten. Although the men did not enter the wards, bullets from their guns landed inside some of them.

An alarming increase in violence perpetrated by all parties is endangering the lives of patients and staff in health and other facilities in the DRC. MSF teams have dealt with about 15 incidents affecting the hospitals and structures they support in the two provinces since the beginning of 2025.

In one, at the MSF base in Masisi, North Kivu, on 20 February, fighting between an allied group and the AFC led to the shooting of MSF employee Jerry Muhindo Kavali and one other person. Kavali died two days later.

In another 150 kilometres from Masisi, fighting trapped staff at the MSF base and at the hospital in Walikale on 19 March. More than 700 displaced people are sheltering at the hospital. With no viable road or air routes to transport essential medicine, the ability to provide medical help is compromised.

In South Kivu in mid-February, patients at the General Referral Hospital in Uvira took cover to avoid being hit by crossfire. The fighting interrupted medical activities. Armed men also entered the compound, moving around and shooting inside.
 

MSF reiterates its commitment to providing medical care alongside local health services in these conflict-affected provinces. However, the increased frequency and severity of violent incidents is straining our capacity to respond and may lead to the suspension of some services. “Without minimum security guarantees, health workers and humanitarian organisations cannot work,” says Grelet. “They must not risk their lives to continue providing vital care to the population. We call on all parties to preserve the civilian character of health facilities.”

In Goma, as in several localities in North and South Kivu, MSF supports several health structures, providing healthcare, maternal, paediatric, cholera and malnutrition care and care for victims of sexual violence. MSF has been working in Kyeshero hospital for several years, managing cases of malnutrition. MSF has also supported the Kyeshero and Virunga hospitals, as well as the Minova General Referral Hospital and the Numbi hospital centre in South Kivu, by treating people wounded by armed clashes at the beginning of the year.