Taarifa Congo Desk has established that the battle hardened FRN Rebels conducted a blistering offensive against Congolese troops and effectively seized strategic towns of Kalonge and Bitale in South Kivu Province.
Eyewitnesses narrated to a local radio station that the rebels entered Bitale on Saturday morning.
“RFN elements are in Bitale. They overran through a place called Masanganjiya and are in Bitale,” a local source said.
The outgunned Congolese troops with Wazalendo militia fled to Myowe village. The government forces are still present in Bulambika.
The FRN rebels have also gained control of Kalonge, another agglomeration in the Kahuzi Biega National Park.
“They have been here since 4:30 p.m. FRN soldiers are visible in Fendula, specifically at the group leader’s house,” the same source said.
Local sources indicate that FRN rebels who captured Kalonge passed through Kabare, Mudaka, Biega, Kasurusiru, Fendula.
The day before, clashes were widespread on several fronts, in several territories of the province of South Kivu, including Kabare, Kalehe, Fizi, Mwenga and Walungu.
