File Photo: Miners work at the D4 Gakombe coltan mining quarry in Rubaya, Congo, May 9, 2025. AP
The Egyptian foreign ministry said Cairo stood in solidarity with the Congolese government and people following the disaster, which left large numbers dead and injured, and offered its “deepest sympathies” to the families of the victims and those still missing.
The collapse occurred on Wednesday at an artisanal coltan mining site in Rubaya, in North Kivu province, after heavy seasonal rains triggered landslides that buried multiple hand-dug pits.
Local officials and medical sources said more than 200 people were killed, including women and children, in one of the deadliest mining accidents in the country’s history. The death toll is expected to rise as search and recovery operations continue.
Rubaya is a major global source of coltan, a mineral used to extract tantalum, a key component in electronic devices. The site is estimated to account for more than 15 percent of global tantalum supply, while the DRC produces roughly 40 percent of the world’s coltan.
Mining in the area is largely informal and unregulated, relying on manually excavated pits with minimal safety measures.
According to United Nations (UN) reports, the mines in Rubaya have been under the control of the AFC/M23 rebel group since 2024, with the group taxing coltan production and transport.
Rescue efforts have been hampered by unstable ground, continuing rainfall, and the fragile condition of underground tunnels. Local health facilities have also struggled to cope with the influx of casualties.
Eastern Congo remains one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, with millions displaced by decades of fighting involving government forces and armed groups, despite ongoing regional and diplomatic efforts to curb the violence.
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