DistantNews
Support us
🇨🇩 DR Congo /Conflict & Security

Goma bombing survivors still bear scars from January 2025 attacks

From Radio Okapi · () French

Translated from French, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Survivors of January 2025 bombings in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, continue to live with the physical and emotional consequences.
  • The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) program provides prosthetics and rehabilitation to victims.
  • One survivor, Neema Balungwe Sylvie, lost her husband and legs in the attack but expresses hope for recovery with prosthetic support.

Hundreds of men, women, and children in Goma are still living with the lasting effects of the bombings and explosions that struck the city in January 2025. Many survivors have received prosthetic limbs and are undergoing rehabilitation at the Shirika la Umoja Center for the Disabled, thanks to a program run by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for war victims.

Among those benefiting from the program is Neema Balungwe Sylvie, a mother of six who lost her husband when their home was hit by a bomb. Now fitted with new prosthetic legs, she is learning to walk again. "With these prosthetics, I have hope that I will be able to walk again, resume my life as before, and strive to meet my children's needs," Sylvie stated. Despite the lingering pain, this assistance has rekindled a sense of hope within her.

With these prosthetics, I have hope that I will be able to walk again, resume my life as before, and strive to meet my children's needs.

— Neema Balungwe SylvieA survivor of the January 2025 bombings in Goma, expressing hope for recovery with new prosthetic legs.

Sylvie emphasized how the war has irrevocably altered her life. "Normally, war is not good, it is not good at all. If today I no longer have my two legs, it is an accident linked to the war. I am a widow; it is because of the war. No one can wish for war because it causes many injuries," she said. She appealed to those engaged in conflict to find alternative means of resolving their disputes, acknowledging that even if peace returns, her family's picture can never be fully restored.

Her plea is for peace, urging an end to the violence that has inflicted such profound suffering. The ongoing trauma and physical challenges faced by survivors like Sylvie highlight the devastating human cost of conflict, even as international aid efforts provide crucial support for recovery and rehabilitation.

Normally, war is not good, it is not good at all. If today I no longer have my two legs, it is an accident linked to the war. I am a widow; it is because of the war. No one can wish for war because it causes many injuries.

— Neema Balungwe SylvieReflecting on the devastating impact of war on her life and family.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Radio Okapi in French. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog