Nigeria, May 12 -- Civilians caught up in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) conflict are developing mechanisms to protect themselves - even as civilian attacks are rising, and the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the DRC's (MONUSCO) footprint is shrinking.

Since the mission's 2024 withdrawal from the province, South Kivu has been left with an acute gap in civilian protection. Renewed under United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2808 in December 2025, MONUSCO's mandate still places civilian protection at its core. But international human rights groups have repeatedly highlighted the gap between high-level ceasefire diplomacy and realities on the ground.

Human Rights Watch reported grave abu...