Reporters Without Borders (RSF), an international organization defending press freedom, says the buildings of Radio and Television Nyiragongo Musisimuke (RTNM), located in northern Goma, have been converted into offices used by the AFC/M23 intelligence service.
According to RSF, RTNM stopped operating in January 2025, a few days after AFC/M23 took control of the area where the radio station was based.
The organization says that since mid-2025, the buildings have reportedly been used by the AFC/M23 intelligence service.
People allegedly detained in the buildings
RSF says it interviewed four people, including two who claimed they had been detained inside the buildings previously occupied by RTNM.
The two individuals reportedly said they were beaten during interrogations and that some detainees spent several days inside rooms within the former radio station premises.
They said they were later transferred to the offices of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a location known as Chien MĂ©chant.
Camille Montagu, RSF’s head of Sub-Saharan Africa, said AFC/M23 had “crossed a line” by turning a media facility into an intelligence office.
RSF says it attempted to contact Lawrence Kanyuka, AFC/M23 spokesperson, and Dr. Oscar Balinda, the group’s deputy spokesperson in charge of political affairs, to obtain their response to the allegations.
The organization says neither official responded to its requests.
RSF also said it attempted to contact Dr. Oscar Balinda to find out AFC/M23’s position on the allegations, but had been unable to reach him by telephone by the time the report was published.
Intelligence official denies reports of violence
Meanwhile, the deputy head of the intelligence service operating from the buildings denied that acts of violence had taken place at the facility since he assumed leadership.
He also said he could not confirm that the buildings occupied by the intelligence service were the same premises previously used by RTNM.
RSF said it also examined photographs taken in July 2026, which showed that the RTNM logo was still visible at the entrance to the buildings.
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