Over 200 Killed in Coltan Mine Collapse in Eastern DRC

Over 200 people were killed on Wednesday after the collapse of a massive coltan mine in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The mine, known as the Rubaya coltan mine, is located in North Kivu, an area controlled by the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels. The rebels are part of a group primarily made up of Tutsis, an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region who reside in the Rwanda-Burundi area. M23 has controlled the region for over a year now after invading the DRC in February 2025, which they claim is just the first step towards their future goal of overthrowing the Congolese government in Kinshasa.

After taking control of the city of Goma, the rebels continued to expand their territory, making Goma the center of their invasion. Rubaya, located just 25 miles away from Goma, was quickly snapped up by M23, who took control of its resources.

Coltan, a metallic ore rich in niobium and tantalum, is crucial to global technology advancements due to tantalum's usage in heat-resistant capacitors, which are used in almost every form of electronic device. The DRC, with its mineral-rich eastern region, holds almost 80% of the world's coltan reserves, making it one of the largest producers of the mineral alongside neighboring Rwanda.

The Rubaya mine, specifically, is crucial to this industry– accounting for 15% of the world's total coltan, Rubaya is the world's largest coltan mine. However, this week's mine collapse could impede that global supply chain.

At least 227 people have been confirmed dead after a section of the mine's floor collapsed after heavy rain, and over 20 others are in critical condition. An official death toll has not been released yet, as rescue teams are still pulling bodies from the rubble, and locals asserted that some miners are still trapped inside.

The incident has also raised further concerns from human rights groups, which have long targeted central Africa and the DRC with accusations of rampant child labor exploitation and inhumane treatment and compensation for miners. Many workers toil throughout the day and night to obtain minerals used by the Western world, while they receive a few dollars a day in return.

Additionally, without proper resources, the miners are forced to battle tough conditions without equipment and resort to the technique of artisanal mining, which uses pans and shovels instead of modern technology. Without the right gear or techniques, mine collapses become more common as tunnels grow longer without support, and a weak local government further worsens the issue.

Meanwhile, the United Nations and the DRC have condemned the M23 rebels of capturing the Rubaya mine and utilizing its profits to fund their incursion of the DRC, further destabilizing the central African nation and strengthening Rwanda– this has been denied by Rwanda, though.

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Image credit to MONUSCO