Non-state actors and conflicts / mostly East Africa / Ohioan / Defections Operations Coordinator at the Bridgeway Foundation / @SAISHopkins alum
Joined March 2014
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Very excited to announce that our new book "Islamic State in Africa: The Emergence, Evolution, and Future of the Next Jihadist Battlefront" by @warnjason with myself, @MENASTREAM and @Pol_Sec_Analyst is now available! hurstpublishers.com/book/the…
RDF/M23/Twirwaneho had seized the position in July 2026, and retaking it is logistically critical for sustained operations on the plateaux itself, as roads to both Minembwe and Mikenge pass through Point Zéro.
Point Zéro, located ~1100m above the plain below, would be a challenging objective for any military. RDF/M23/Twirwaneho units defending Point Zéro have excellent visibility of advances coming towards them from below, all the more so with extensive use of ISR drones.
Regarding Tim Kennedy, it’s very weird that people are still talking about “Rwanda-backed M23 insurgents” as if it’s just some insurgency supplied by Kigali. It’s not. This is a conventional interstate war involving three state militaries and ~100k auxiliary militia combatants.
JUST IN: Forces tied to Erik Prince’s Vectus Global were ambushed in South Kivu in Congo on September 17 while moving between locations, Reuters reported today.
About 20 people were killed or wounded, including at least seven Congolese and a former New Zealand SAS operator. Former UFC fighter and Green Beret Tim Kennedy was also wounded.
Sources said the attack’s sophistication points to Rwandan forces backing M23 (March 23 Movement), the main rebel group fighting the Congolese army. One government source said those forces may have tracked a Vectus surveillance drone to the team.
Vectus, which also works in Haiti, had been hired to help secure mineral revenue and earlier supported Congolese troops around Uvira.
This also isn’t an example of how the proliferation of drones has increased the capabilities of militias in Africa. Cheap FPV drones aren’t jamming GPS over hundreds of kilometers or shooting down strike aircraft.
