This video grab made from AFP TV footage in Goma on January 28, 2025, shows members of the M23 armed group walking in the streets of the city. Picture: AFPTV / AFP
Image: AFPTV / AFP
Four more soldiers died in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in combat against M23 rebels, the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) confirmed on Tuesday.
"Following an exchange of mortar bombs between the FARDC, Congolese Defence Force and the M23 rebel militia on Monday, January 27, near Goma Airport where the SANDF Base is collocated, three members of the SANDF were caught in the crossfire and were killed," the defence department said.
"The M23 rebels launched several mortar bombs in the direction of Goma Airport, which landed in the SANDF base, and this resulted in the SANDF losing three members," it said.
"Furthermore, the SANDF is also saddened to announce that one of our members who was injured during the battle with M23 rebels over the past three days later succumbed to injuries."
The department said that the rest of the injured members continued to receive medical attention at the Level 3 Hospital in Goma.
"The SANDF remains fully committed to its peacekeeping responsibilities under the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) and SADC Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (SAMIDRC)," the department said.
"Our troops continue to operate with resolve, courage, and discipline in pursuit of peace and stability in the region."
This raises the death toll of South African soldiers in the Central African country to 13
The SANDF said it noted "with concern" the viral video on social media accompanied by "misleading claims" that suggest it surrendered to M23 rebels.
"We wish to set the record straight. The footage in question depicts a white flag raised, which is an outcome of discussions between the opposing fighting forces to agree on a truce to allow M23 to recover their dead and injured in the vicinity of our base," it said.
"This will also open the route for our troops to access medical facilities. This is common practice in any war. Let members of the public not be alarmed by a video clip and its meaning."
Defence and Military Veterans Minister, Angie Motshekga, the Deputy Ministers of Defence and Military Veterans, Major-General (ret) Bantu Holomisa and Richard Hlophe, with the Acting Secretary for Defence, Dr Thobekile Gamede and the Chief of the South African National Defence Force, General Rudzani Maphwanya send their heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased and the entire defence family, they said in a statement.
AFP reported that on Tuesday, explosions could still be heard in some neighborhoods of Goma, a city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Earlier, IOL reported how an unexpected knock at the door changed everything for a Limpopo family when the SANDF arrived with news that their soldier son, Louis Calvin Moagi, their breadwinner, had been killed in the DRC.
The family was watching television on Saturday night, when the knock came, bringing the news that Louis was one of nine South African soldiers killed in a two-day clash with the M23 rebel group near the city of Goma.
Louis, 28, who hails from Sekororo village, in Limpopo, had been deployed to the DRC in support of peacekeeping efforts.
The family spokesperson Monageng Moagi said the family was left in shock by the SANDF’s visit.
“We were shocked, and nothing could have prepared us for this sad news,” he told IOL News.
The family is struggling to accept Louis’s death, which still feels surreal.
On Monday, the SANDF said its members were safe in their bases, amid widespread reports that M23 rebels have seized the city of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The SANDF troops, deployed as part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC), were engaged in a two-day battle to prevent the rebel group from advancing towards Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu.
On Monday, after the rebels claimed to have overrun Goma, SANDF spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini said the South Africans who are part of SADC peacekeepers deployed to DRC are safe in their bases.
IOL