DR Congo’s Goma airport reopens to first flight after yearlong closure

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) – Goma International Airport in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo resumed symbolic operations Thursday when a UN helicopter landed there after more than a year of closure due to ongoing conflict in the country.

A helicopter carrying the interim head of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Congo (MONUSCO), Vivian van de Perre, landed before noon local time as part of the mission’s mandate and efforts to support monitoring of a ceasefire between Congo’s government and AFC/M23 rebels.

“As part of our mandate and our efforts to support the operationalization of the ceasefire monitoring and verification mechanism, I recall that more than a year ago, on Jan. 26, 2025, I was on the last plane to land at Goma Airport. Today, I’m on the first aircraft to land here again,” van de Perre told reporters at the airport.

There was no clear indication from the rebels who control the airport whether it marked a reopening to civil aviation.

But analysts say Thursday’s landing signaled that MONUSCO could be regaining control of its terminal, which could allow a resumption of UN flights and potentially humanitarian flights.

Van de Perre expressed hope that her landing marked the beginning of the airport’s gradual reopening for the local population.

Congolese rebel groups, including M23 (AFC/M23), allegedly supported by Rwanda, seized the airport in January 2025 as their fighters swept through the North Kivu provincial capital, Goma.

Last October, speaking at the International Conference for Peace and Prosperity in the Great Lakes region in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said the reopening of the airport for humanitarian flights was expected in the following weeks.

But in a statement, the rebels said any such action could only be undertaken within ongoing negotiations in Doha.

MONUSCO, in a statement Thursday, reiterated that its support for ceasefire monitoring and verification will continue under its Security Council mandate and in full respect of Congo’s sovereignty.

The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, said Tuesday that MONUSCO would deploy forces in the border city of Uvira in South Kivu province to monitor the ceasefire if security guarantees are met.

Van de Perre maintained this position, saying MONUSCO will deploy a first aerial reconnaissance mission in Uvira in the coming days, and her visit aimed to coordinate with relevant stakeholders ahead of the deployment.