Twenty people are believed to have died following a terrorist attack in region of Byambwe in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday 14th November 2025.

A hospital run by a group of sisters in the rural village of North Kivu of Byambwe was stormed at 10pm local time on Friday by members of the Allied Democratic Forces. Militants entered the village and attacked the diocesan health centre, killing a number in the building before setting the hospital ablaze. The terrorists then moved through the village and destroyed a further 27 homes before fleeing into surrounding forest.

The hospital, run by the Sisters of the Presentation, had operated as an emergency maternity clinic in the otherwise isolated diocese of Butembo-Beni. It is believed that the terrorist group was motivated by the hospital’s medical supplies, which were obtained before the building was destroyed.

Fr Giovanni Piumatti, a Catholic priest who had previously worked in the region, confirmed to Vatican News that the attack was a “typical ADF attack”, and that the terrorist group had been active in the region for 3 years.

The attackers are presumed to be the same group that stormed a church in the village of Komanda in the Ituri Province in July, killing dozens of Christians gathered there to pray, highlighting a concerning pattern in the rise of terrorist attacks in the area.

The priest has denounced the silence of the international community as “shameful”, stating that these kinds of attacks happen “almost weekly”, with many going unreported.

In reference to the lack of response globally, Fr. Giovanni referenced the silence of the West, suggesting that Western countries were complicit due to economic gain derived from a country full of resources.

He said: “These massacres are beyond imagination…the world’s silence is profoundly troubling.”