Rubaya produces about 15 percent of the world’s coltan, which is processed into tantalum, a metal resistant to high temperatures used by manufacturers of mobile phones, computers and aircraft components, as well as gas turbines, reports HINA.
The site, where locals mine by hand for a few dollars a day, has been under the control of the M23 rebel group since 2024. The collapse happened on Wednesday and the exact death toll was not known until Friday evening.
“More than 200 people were victims of this landslide, including miners, children and saleswomen. Some people were rescued in time and have serious injuries,” Muyisa said. The United Nations says the M23 group looted Rubaya’s riches to fund an insurgency backed by the government of neighboring Rwanda, a charge Kigali denies.
Heavily armed rebels, whose aim is to topple the government in Kinshasa and protect the minority Congolese Tutsi, seized more mineral-rich territory in eastern Congo during a fierce advance last year.
(Vijesti.ba)
