Allied Democratic Forces terrorists are capitalizing on chaos in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as security forces focus on the deadly, northward-advancing M23 rebel group.

The Allied Democratic Forces has exploited battles between the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and M23 to expand its own operations, which include attacks on civilians and security services. This year, the M23 advanced north to the town of Lubero in the North Kivu province, where both groups had been active but in different areas.

“What followed is illustrative of the risk of escalating insecurity through overlapping violence,” wrote Ladd Serwat, an analyst with the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.

In early January 2025, the M23 and the Rwandan Defense Force bat

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