Bulletin 2026-09UCDP data through GED 26.1, Candidate Events 26.0.9Changes in the data

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Events and deaths in organized violence, as UCDP records them

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DR Congo: events and estimated deaths recorded by UCDP

Data through Population 112,832,473 (World Bank, 2025)

Coverage ends on . Figures that include Candidate Events are preliminary. Compare the two recorded 12-month windows.

UCDP recorded 43 eventsP of organized violence in DR Congo in September 2026. The best estimate of deaths in these events is 121P. The low estimate is 87 and the high estimate is 794P. The count for August 2026 was 50 eventsP.

In the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026, UCDP recorded 742 eventsP in DR Congo. The best estimate of deaths in the events of the 12 months is 3,810P. The low estimate is 3,019 and the high estimate is 11,318P. UCDP counts 2,715P of these deaths as deaths of civilians.

Among the 49 countries with a page, DR Congo has the 9th highest count of events in the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026. In the UCDP region Africa, DR Congo has the 4th highest count of events of the 20 countries with a page. In the 12 months to 30 Sep 2025, UCDP recorded 963 events in DR Congo. The count for the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026 is 742P, which is down 23 percent. Over the same periods, the count for all countries with a page together went from 27,291 to 22,144P, which is down 19 percent. Events of one-sided violence are 41 percentP of the events in DR Congo in the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026. For all countries with a page, the share is 13 percentP.

Table 1. DR Congo: events and estimated deaths that UCDP records
FigureSeptember 2026PAugust 2026P12 months to 30 Sep 2026P
Events4350742
Estimated deaths, best estimate1211893,810
Low estimate of deaths871293,019
High estimate of deaths79426311,318
Deaths of civilians701472,715

P Preliminary. The figure is from UCDP Candidate Events, and UCDP revises these events.

Not all events in UCDP Candidate will make it into the final UCDP GED and new events will be added. The UCDP Candidate is a dataset containing events that have a high probability of being included in the final annual version of UCDP GED.

An incident where armed force was used by an organized actor against another organized actor, or against civilians, resulting in at least 1 direct death at a specific location and a specific date

UCDP's words. Source: UCDP Candidate Events Dataset Codebook, version 1.5 (Introduction) and UCDP GED Codebook, version 26.1 (section 2, the definition of an event), copied on .

This page rests on UCDP GED 26.1 and UCDP Candidate Events 26.0.9, with data through . The figures from January 2026 are from Candidate Events. Candidate Events are preliminary and UCDP revises them.

The pages give counts and their sources. They give no travel, security or safety advice. A count of events is not a measure of danger.

Since the last update

ConflictStats recorded this on .

  • UCDP recorded 121 estimated deaths in DR Congo in September 2026 (preliminary). The estimate for August 2026 was 189 (preliminary).

All changes recorded on 28 Oct 2026

24 months

Source: UCDP GED to December 2025, UCDP Candidate Events from January 2026.

0100200Jan 2025Jan 2026GEDCandidate
Figure 1. Events in DR Congo by month. A hollow column is a preliminary month. The line marks the change of dataset: GED to the left, Candidate Events from Jan 2026 to the right. The two datasets are not made in the same way, so a step at the line is not only a change in the events. The figures are in Table 7.
02,5005,000Jan 2025Jan 2026GEDCandidate
Figure 2. Estimated deaths in DR Congo by month, best estimate. A hollow column is a preliminary month. The line marks the change of dataset: GED to the left, Candidate Events from Jan 2026 to the right. The two datasets are not made in the same way, so a step at the line is not only a change in the events. The figures are in Table 7.
Figure 3. Events in DR Congo, 3 Jul 2026 to 30 Sep 2026. The map shows 159 events with 583 estimated deaths. One dot is one event at the place that UCDP gives. When a source names no exact place, UCDP puts the event at the centre of a region or of the country. The area of a dot follows the best estimate of deaths. The largest dot is for 330 deaths or more.1 death10 deaths100 deathsOutlines: Natural Earth, with the first-level areas of the UCDP data. An outline shows where the events are. It is not a statement about a border.

Regions

A region is a first-level area in the UCDP data. A region needs 5 or more events in the last 12 months to have a page. Search engines list a region page at 30 or more.

Table 2. Regions of DR Congo with a page, in name order: the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026
RegionEventsEstimated deathsLast event
Haut-Uélé province9P24P4 Sep 2026
Ituri province151P988P30 Sep 2026
Kinshasa province9P12P25 Jul 2026
Nord Kivu province312P1,510P30 Sep 2026
Sud Kivu province230P1,160P29 Sep 2026

P Preliminary. The figure is from UCDP Candidate Events, and UCDP revises these events. 5 regions of DR Congo have a page. 15 more regions have events and no page.

Actors, as UCDP names them

Names as UCDP writes them. The glossary has the UCDP definition of an actor and of a dyad.

Table 3. DR Congo: actors, as UCDP names them, in the events of the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026, in name order
Name, as UCDP writes itEventsEstimated deaths in these events
Actor not identified by UCDP9P23P
AFC407P2,067P
Bena Mataamba1P5P
Bena Mukendi1P5P
Bororo (Fulani)1P1P
CRP36P182P
Falwono2P3P
Fampie2P3P
FDLR-FOCA12P28P
FDLR-FOCA, VDP6P36P
FPIC Chambre noire sanduku13
Government of Burundi1P0P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire)323P1,364P
Government of Rwanda1P12P
Government of Uganda1P1P
Group named for a person (name not shown)4P13P
IS173P1,135P
Kata Katanga4P27P
Kuluna (Kinshasa)1P1P
LRA1P1P
Mayi Mayi Chini ya Tuna1P8P
Mayi Mayi Kifuafua1P4P
Mayi Mayi Uhuru2P7P
MDKC1P5P
Mobondo2P23P
NAS1P2P
RED-TABARA1P2P
URDPC20P167P
VDP164P654P
Zaire self-defense group114

An event has two sides, so one event can be in two rows. The deaths are the deaths in the events of a side. The table does not say which side caused a death. Names are as UCDP writes them, with two labels that the site writes. UCDP does not identify some actors: the site writes "Actor not identified by UCDP" for each of them. UCDP names some groups for a person: the site writes "Group named for a person (name not shown)" for each of them. A line with a label can hold more than one actor.

Table 4. DR Congo: UCDP dyads in the events of the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026, in name order
Dyad, as UCDP writes itEventsEstimated deaths
Actor not identified by UCDP - Actor not identified by UCDP2P7P
Actor not identified by UCDP - Civilians7P16P
AFC - Civilians59P455P
AFC - FDLR-FOCA6P14P
AFC - FDLR-FOCA, VDP6P36P
AFC - VDP128P572P
Bena Mataamba - Bena Mukendi1P5P
Bororo (Fulani) - Civilians1P1P
CRP - Civilians3P5P
CRP - URDPC1P16P
Falwono - Fampie2P3P
FDLR-FOCA - Civilians6P14P
FPIC Chambre noire sanduku - Civilians13
Government of Burundi - Government of DR Congo (Zaire)1P0P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire) - AFC208P990P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire) - Civilians32P49P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire) - CRP32P161P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire) - Government of Rwanda1P12P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire) - IS45P125P
Government of DR Congo (Zaire) - Kata Katanga4P27P
Government of Uganda - Civilians1P1P
Group named for a person (name not shown) - Civilians1P2P
IS - Civilians128P1,010P
Kuluna (Kinshasa) - Civilians1P1P
LRA - Civilians1P1P
Mayi Mayi Chini ya Tuna - Civilians1P8P
Mayi Mayi Kifuafua - Group named for a person (name not shown)1P4P
Mayi Mayi Uhuru - Group named for a person (name not shown)2P7P
MDKC - Civilians1P5P
Mobondo - Civilians2P23P
NAS - Civilians1P2P
RED-TABARA - Civilians1P2P
URDPC - Civilians18P137P
URDPC - Zaire self-defense group114
VDP - Civilians36P82P

P Preliminary. The figure is from UCDP Candidate Events, and UCDP revises these events.

Type of violence

Table 5. DR Congo: events by type of violence, the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026
Type of violenceEventsShare of events
State-based armed conflict292P39%
Non-state conflict149P20%
One-sided violence against civilians301P41%

P Preliminary. The figure is from UCDP Candidate Events, and UCDP revises these events.

State-based conflict

A state-based armed conflict is a contested incompatibility that concerns government and/or territory where the use of armed force between two parties, of which at least one is the government of a state, results in at least 25 battle-related deaths in one calendar year.

UCDP's words. Source: UCDP Definitions, copied on .

Non-state conflict

The use of armed force between two organised armed groups, neither of which is the government of a state, which results in at least 25 battle-related deaths in a year.

UCDP's words. Source: UCDP Definitions, copied on .

One-sided violence

The deliberate use of armed force by the government of a state or by a formally organised group against civilians which results in at least 25 deaths in a year.

UCDP's words. Source: UCDP Definitions, copied on .

Years

Years to 2025 are from the UCDP GED. The year 2026 is from Candidate Events and is not complete.

Table 6. DR Congo: events and estimated deaths by year
YearEventsEstimated deathsDataset
20175035,981GED
20184623,147GED
20194412,529GED
20208344,004GED
20218113,742GED
20221,1555,920GED
20238404,383GED
20248015,446GED
20251,0319,172GED
2026, to 30 Sep 2026496P2,605PCandidate Events

P Preliminary. The figure is from UCDP Candidate Events, and UCDP revises these events.

Monthly reports

One report for each month with events. Search engines list a report of a month in the last 12 months that has 20 or more events.

Table 7. Monthly reports of DR Congo, newest first: events and estimated deaths
MonthEventsEstimated deathsDataset
September 202643P121PCandidate Events
August 202650P189PCandidate Events
July 202671P282PCandidate Events
June 202659P266PCandidate Events
May 202691P535PCandidate Events
April 202647P382PCandidate Events
March 202644P265PCandidate Events
February 202634P134PCandidate Events
January 202657P431PCandidate Events
December 202587518GED
November 202575411GED
October 202584276GED
September 202577301GED
August 202584464GED
July 202572644GED
June 202567246GED
May 202575554GED
April 202563257GED
March 2025102471GED
February 202582513GED
January 20251634,517GED
December 202480276GED
November 202436134GED
October 202462235GED
September 202477277GED
August 202458191GED

P Preliminary. The figure is from UCDP Candidate Events, and UCDP revises these events. Search engines list a report of a month in the last 12 months that has 20 or more events. The other reports stay online and ask search engines not to list them.

Other countries of the UCDP region Africa

Comparisons

Refugees and asylum seekers

Not UCDP data. Source: UNHCR Refugee Population Statistics Database, CC BY 4.0, figures for the end of 2025.

Table 8. People from DR Congo who are in other countries, end of 2025 (UNHCR)
GroupPeople
Refugees1,176,489
Asylum seekers168,421

These figures come from UNHCR. They are not a part of the UCDP counts of events and deaths. UNHCR has not endorsed this site. Read the UNHCR terms of use for datasets.

Official channels

These links go to the sites of the organisations. The UCDP and World Bank links were checked on .

Cite and download

ConflictStats. DR Congo: events and estimated deaths recorded by UCDP. https://conflictstats.com/country/dr-congo/. Source: Uppsala Conflict Data Program, UCDP GED 26.1 and UCDP Candidate Events 26.0.9. Data through .

The address of this page does not change. UCDP asks for a citation of its publications: Data sources and licences has it.

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The files are made from UCDP data, CC BY 4.0. The figures from January 2026 are from UCDP Candidate Events. Candidate Events are preliminary and UCDP revises them. The rate for the 12 months is 6.6 (preliminary) events for each million inhabitants.

Questions

How many events did UCDP record in DR Congo in September 2026?

UCDP recorded 43 eventsP of organized violence in DR Congo in September 2026. The count for August 2026 was 50 eventsP.

How does UCDP count deaths?

UCDP gives a best estimate, a low estimate and a high estimate for each event. This page uses the best estimate. For DR Congo in the 12 months to 30 Sep 2026, the best estimate is 3,810P. The low estimate is 3,019 and the high estimate is 11,318P.

Are the figures of the latest months final?

No. The figures from January 2026 are from UCDP Candidate Events. Candidate Events are preliminary and UCDP revises them. UCDP releases the reviewed dataset, the GED, one time each year.

Where are the events of DR Congo as a CSV file?

The file has one row for each event from 1 Sep 2024 to 30 Sep 2026. It has 1,782 rows. Download the events (CSV)