Kivu Conflict
Long-running armed conflict in eastern Congo after the Second Congo War, with recurring rebel offensives and regional involvement.
Historical overview
Ongoing conflict overview and stored locally on May 11, 2026.
The Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including neighboring Ituri province, there are more than 120 different armed groups active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently, some of the most active rebel groups include the Allied Democratic Forces, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo, the March 23 Movement, and many local Mai Mai militias. In addition to armed groups and the governmental FARDC troops, a number of national, regional and international forces have intervened militarily in the conflict, including the United Nations force known as MONUSCO, the militaries of Uganda and Burundi, and a force from the East African Community known as the East African Community Regional Force. The Kivu region is thus regarded as a key geopolitical arena, where local armed groups intersect with broader regional rivalries and international strategic interests. Analysts note that competition over natural resources, cross-border alliances, and external interventions have transformed the conflict from a purely domestic issue into a wider geopolitical struggle.
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Border context
Post-9/11 intervention era
Counterterror wars, state-building campaigns and unresolved post-Soviet disputes dominate the early twenty-first-century map.
Afghanistan and Iraq become the central intervention theaters. Congo, Darfur and the Caucasus remain active conflict zones.Arab uprisings and insurgency expansion
Uprisings, regime collapse and insurgencies spread across the Middle East, North Africa and the Sahel.
Syria and Libya enter civil war. Mali and Lake Chad become major insurgency theaters.ISIS wars and renewed interstate pressure
The ISIS territorial project, Yemen's war and Russia's first phase of war against Ukraine reshape conflict geography.
ISIS loses territorial control by 2019. Crimea, Donbas, Yemen and the Sahel remain decisive zones.Pandemic-era wars and invasion shock
Wars in Ethiopia, Myanmar and Ukraine show state collapse, mass mobilization and renewed interstate war.
Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion reorients European security. Myanmar's coup turns into nationwide civil war.Current conflict pre-live archive
Sudan, Gaza, Ukraine, Myanmar and the Middle East escalation define the archive immediately before the live endpoint.
The next tick after 2025 is the live worker-backed map. Static history stops before the live endpoint.