Explosions were heard as far as the Burundian hills bordering the Rusizi River. Shells that landed on Burundian territory caused fear, while Congolese civilians fleeing the fighting were prevented from entering Burundi.

For two days, gunfire and bomb blasts have shaken the towns of Katogota, Luvungi, and Kamanyola in South Kivu. On the hills of Rukana and Mparambo, in Cibitoke Commune, Bujumbura Province, fear has spread as residents stopped going to their farms, afraid the fighting could spill into Burundi.

According to several witnesses who spoke to SOS Médias Burundi, at least three shells fired from Kamanyola fell on Burundian soil, near Gatoki, in the Rukana zone.

No deaths or damage were reported. Additional reports say Burundian soldiers positioned in the high hills of Bwegera reportedly responded by firing back toward Kamanyola.

On Wednesday evening, Lawrence Kanyuka, the spokesperson for M23, issued a statement saying that four civilians had been killed and six others injured in several areas of Kamanyola.

On the Congolese side of the border, members of the Imbonerakure, the youth wing of Burundi’s ruling CNDD-FDD party, backed by Burundian soldiers, blocked fleeing Congolese civilians from crossing the Rusizi River. Meanwhile, the Burundian government has not yet issued any official statement on the situation.