RSF investigation: DRC radio station near Goma turned into AFC/M23 intelligence service office

David — whose name has been changed for security reasons — witnessed this first-hand. In September 2025, the Goma resident was taken by individuals on motorcycles to the premises of Radio Télévision Nyiragongo Musisimuke, where he was brought inside and repeatedly beaten. His captors suspected him of being a criminal. After being held for two days in a room that had been converted into a cell, he was transferred to the provincial office of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR), known as Chien Méchant, which means “mean dog” in French.

Stanley (name changed) experienced the same sequence of events and endured similar conditions when detained at the radio station in spring 2026: a violent interrogation at the former radio station, inadequate food and an eventual transfer to Chien Méchant. Questioned about his alleged links and activities with the Wazalendo, civilian auxiliaries of the regular Congolese army, he said he was subjected to violence while he was being questioned and then held for nearly a week in a room with three other people. During that time, Stanley was fed only once a day, a mixture of rice and beans.

David and Stanley are certain of one thing: both said they saw the radio station’s logo on the gate of the compound. RSF also examined photographs taken in July 2026 showing that the logo was still displayed at the entrance.

Neither AFC/M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka, deputy spokesperson Oscar Balinda nor the head of the intelligence service operating from the radio station’s premises responded to RSF’s requests for comment.

The deputy head of the local intelligence service has denied that there have been violent interrogations since he joined the office three months ago. He stated that he cannot confirm whether a radio station was located in the building, before adding that the station, which belonged to a “politician,” could fabricate information about us.” 

Journalists intimidated, a radio station seized

When the privately owned local radio station, founded in 2021, was shut down and stripped of its equipment just days after the armed coalition seized control of the city in early 2025, its journalists were already facing constant pressure. 

“After they took control of the area, the M23 wanted the radio station to keep operating. They intimidated us a lot, making numerous phone calls,” said a former journalist at the station, who requested anonymity.

According to RSF information, members of the armed group even arrested and beat up the station’s director in August 2025. A few days later, Éphrem Kabasha, the AFC/M23-appointed territorial administrator, ordered her to hand over the keys to the premises, which ultimately ended up in the hands of the rebels.

According to the head of a Goma-based civil society organisation that requested anonymity, the AFC/M23 has developed a strategy of seizing and controlling “buildings belonging to Kinshasa dignitaries.” This applies to the case of Radio Télévision Nyiragongo Musisimuke, as the station’s owner is a former politician, now based in Kinshasa. According to RSF information, his private residence was also seized.

Éphrem Kabasha, the territorial administrator in office when the rebels seized control of the area, declined to answer RSF’s questions, saying that he was not “the spokesperson for the revolution.”

A media landscape on life support

Since seizing territories in the provinces of North and South Kivu, the AFC/M23 has tightened its grip on the region’s media. The latest example came on 19 August, when the governor of South Kivu province announced a ban on “political programmes” in Bukavu. In February 2025, media outlets in the city had already been issued around ten directives, including a ban on broadcasting statements by Congolese authorities or reporting negative information about the M23.

The rebel group has also resorted to violence and arbitrary arrests, as illustrated by the many journalists detained in Goma’s prisons. In April 2026, RSF also revealed that journalists were being held in shipping containers at the provincial assembly in the same city, in inhuman and degrading conditions.