Plane crash kills soldiers and senior officials in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC
NSANZIMANA SylverSep 28, 20263 min read
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Plane crash kills soldiers and senior officials in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
The DRC has once again lost its key leaders. While the country continues to struggle with ongoing conflicts in the east, news of a plane crash in the west has sent shockwaves through all levels of military justice.
Two senior military justice officers in the DRC died in a plane crash in the town of Kenge, in Kwango Province, in the west of the country, on September 25, 2026.
The DRC military (FARDC) announced that Lieutenant General Joseph Mutombo Katalayi Tiende, the first President of the Military High Court, and Lieutenant General Lucien René Likulia Bakumi, the Inspector General of the Armed Forces, were among those killed in the crash.
The officers were returning from a working trip to Kikwit, Kwilu Province, when the plane they were flying crashed while returning to Kinshasa. They were on their way to inspect military courts in the province.
The FARDC announced that all people on board the plane were dead. Initial figures had put the number at 16, but the Congolese government later said it was 17, including the two officials, other soldiers and four flight crew members. No one survived.
The DRC's aviation accident investigation agency, the Permanent Bureau of Investigations on Aviation Accidents and Incidents (BPEA), confirmed that a LET 410 UVP aircraft, operated by TRACEP Congo Aviation and bearing registration number 9S-GUC, crashed in Kenge at around 1:14 p.m.
BPEA said the plane took off from Kikwit at 11:45, landed over Kenge and the pilot circled several times looking for an emergency landing site, but it crashed in the Manzau and Masikita districts, where it immediately burned up. An investigation has been launched at the scene, and the black box is still being searched for.
President Félix Tshisekedi ordered an urgent investigation, declared three days of national mourning starting September 28, and lowered flags across the country. The Minister of Justice ordered the case to be opened immediately.
The deaths of these two high-ranking military officials come as the DRC continues to grapple with insecurity and a long-running conflict in the east of the country, where the Military High Court has been handling high-profile cases, including that of Joseph Kabila.
Latest news on the DRC and M23:
Their deaths come as the situation in the east continues to deteriorate. On 25-26 September 2026, heavy fighting broke out again in Masisi, North Kivu, between the FARDC, allied with Wazalendo, and the M23/AFC.
Reports say that M23 has retaken the Remeka, Kaleta and Miko centers after receiving reinforcements from Ngungu, near the Rubaya mining area. The FARDC says it has retaken some of these areas, but fighting is still ongoing.
In South Kivu, in Fizi and Mwenga, M23, in collaboration with Twirwaneho and Red Tabara, is said to have captured the districts of Kakuku, Kashongo and Meta, causing many refugees to flee towards Masango and Lake Tanganyika.
A new Amnesty International report dated September 21, 2026 accused M23 of committing torture, killing miners in Rubaya (coltan) and Lomera (gold), and smuggling these minerals into Rwanda, which may amount to war crimes.
All this shows that the loss of these two men of military justice is even greater, because the Military High Court was supposed to prosecute war crimes committed in the east, while the Kinshasa government says it is going to continue the Washington and Doha talks to seek peace with Rwanda.
Tuganire newsroom
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NSANZIMANA Sylver
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