Erik Prince's forces suffer major Congo ambush as Trump-linked UFC fighter Tim Kennedy is shot three times in the leg

From the Newshound archive · first published 10 October 2026.

Blackwater founder Erik Prince's private military company Vectus Global recorded its first-ever casualties in the Democratic Republic of Congo after Rwanda-backed M23 rebels ambushed its team in South Kivu on September 17, leaving at least 20 people killed or wounded. Former US Green Beret and UFC fighter Tim Kennedy, a close Trump ally, was shot three times in the leg and is now being treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. The dead included at least seven Congolese nationals and a former New Zealand Special Forces member. Neither the scale of the losses nor Prince's role had previously been reported.

A source close to Congo's government said enemy forces may have tracked a Vectus Global surveillance drone back to the team's position before launching the attack.

Kennedy, who has millions of social media followers, appeared alongside Trump at the White House earlier this year — Trump is a well-known UFC fan who has hosted fights there.

Vectus Global, which also operates in Haiti, declined to comment; someone with direct knowledge of the matter said the company had never previously suffered casualties in Congo.