Free Republic 4th Qtr 2025 Fundraising Target: $81,000 Receipts & Pledges to-date: $2,146
2%  
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Keyword: rubaya

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  • Inside the mine that feeds the tech world - and funds Congo’s rebels

    08/13/2025 2:18:10 PM PDT · by E. Pluribus Unum · 6 replies
    Reuters ^ | August 13, 2025 10:00 AM UTC | Giulia Paravicini and David Lewis
    RUBAYA, Democratic Republic of Congo - Under the watchful eye of M23 rebels in the hills around the Congolese town of Rubaya, a line of men in rubber boots ferry sacks full of crushed rocks up winding paths cut into the slopes.The laborers are hauling coltan ore, a mineral that powers the modern world. The ore will be loaded onto motorbikes and eventually shipped thousands of kilometers away to Asia. There it’s processed into tantalum, a heat-resistant metal that fetches more than $300 a kilogram and is in high demand by makers of mobile phones, computers, aerospace components and gas...