Vectus Global mercenaries spotted in DRC

Africans in News on September 8 published video that it said showed personnel linked to Vectus Global in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, reviving scrutiny of a private security network publicly associated with Erik Prince, the founder of Blackwater. The post did not identify the men by name, but it circulated alongside local reporting that described foreign contractors operating in the conflict-affected east. Reuters reported in February that Prince had deployed a private security force to operate drones and help Congo’s army secure the strategic city of Uvira against Rwanda-backed rebels, citing four people briefed on the mission. Public reporting has since tied that force to Vectus Global. ### Who is Vectus Global, and why does Erik Prince’s name keep appearing? Erik Prince is the former head of Blackwater, the U.S. private security firm whose name became synonymous with the 2007 Nisour Square killings in Baghdad. Public reporting in 2025 and 2026 has linked Prince to Vectus Global, a newer private security vehicle active in Haiti and Congo. RFI reported in April that Vectus Global was founded by Prince, while Axios reported in August that Vectus was pitching “air defense as a service.” (africansecurityanalysis.org) Reuters reported on April 17, 2025, that Prince had reached a deal with the Congolese government to help secure and tax the country’s mineral wealth. That agreement, according to Reuters-based republications, was centered on mining revenue and anti-smuggling efforts rather than frontline combat. ### Why does footage from eastern Congo matter if the original deal was about mines? Uvira, in South Kivu province near the Burundi border, became the clearest public sign that the mission had moved beyond revenue enforcement. (rfi.fr) Reuters reported on February 10, 2026, that Prince’s private security force operated drones and helped the Congolese army secure the city after rebels briefly seized it in December. GlobalSecurity, citing Reuters, said Vectus provided drone support to elite Congolese units and worked alongside Israeli advisers training special forces battalions. (archive.ph) Critical Threats, a project of the American Enterprise Institute, said in a February analysis that contractors from Vectus Global were supporting an offensive against militias aligned with the Rwanda-backed M23 rebellion and described the deployment as an expansion of the company’s role in eastern Congo. That assessment is not an official government account, but it matches the broader Reuters reporting that Prince-linked personnel were operating in a frontline environment. (straitstimes.com) ### What is actually verified from the new video, and what is still uncertain? The September 8 post verifies only that a widely viewed social-media account published footage it said showed Vectus Global-linked personnel in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Independent confirmation of the men’s identities, their chain of command and their precise mission was not available in the source material reviewed. Africans in News drew attention to the footage, but the post alone does not establish contractual authority, rules of engagement or whether the personnel were acting in support, training or direct combat roles. (criticalthreats.org) Reuters’ February account remains the strongest independently reported evidence that Prince-linked contractors were already involved in operational support in eastern Congo. That earlier reporting gives the new footage significance because it places the sighting in a documented pattern rather than as a standalone claim. ### What rules are supposed to govern private military contractors in a war zone? (africansecurityanalysis.org) The Montreux Document is the main international reference on the legal obligations of states and good practices related to private military and security companies during armed conflict. Switzerland’s foreign ministry says the document reaffirms states’ obligations under international law, and the ICRC text says established rules of international humanitarian law and human rights law apply to states in their relations with such companies and their operations during armed conflict. (straitstimes.com) DCAF, the Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance, says the Montreux framework is aimed at how states authorize, oversee and control private military and security companies. In practice, that puts the focus on the hiring state, the territorial state and the home state of the company or personnel. ### What comes next in Congo? Eastern Congo remains an active conflict zone, and any further verified sightings of foreign contractors near Uvira or other South Kivu positions will likely be measured against Reuters’ February reporting on drone and combat-support activity. (eda.admin.ch) The next concrete evidence will most likely come from named statements by the Congolese government, additional Reuters reporting, or authenticated footage that identifies the personnel, unit and location more precisely. (dcaf.ch) (straitstimes.com)