eastern congo conflict

Rwandas ambassador to the DRC, Vincent Karega, warned in a June interview with the VOAs Central Africa Service that hate speech is fanning the conflict. While in France to urge the European Union to support peace talks in DRC and sanction Rwanda for its support of M23, President Tshidekedi also raised the specter of delaying national elections. A 28-year-old woman described being gang raped in early January by M23 fighters who had occupied the town of Kako, Rutshuru territory: After my husband left to go to work, five men came and knocked on my door around 10 a.m. The relative calm in Rutshuru territory, for example, allowed more than 45,000 people from the Bishusha group to return home", she said. A large part of the gold traded by Uganda and Rwanda is sourced fraudulently from neighboring countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, said a 2018 report published by the U.N. Group of Experts on Congo. For additional details about M23 abuses and the recent violence, please see below. Gang rapes were reported involving up to five assailants. Periodically, a volcano explodes over Goma, a commercial hub. UN peacekeepers patrol the village of Logo in Djugu territory in eastern DR Congo. Fueling the insecurity: a complicated brew of geopolitics, ethnic and national rivalries and competition for control of eastern DRCs abundant natural resources. Receive daily updates directly in your inbox -, Security in eastern DR Congo continues to worsen, Security Council hears, Security one of the most significant challenges in DR Congo, Security Council hears, DR Congo: Humanitarian situation worsens; UN mission continues to battle armed militias, Mass displacements in eastern DR Congo threaten young lives. A senior UN official warned the Security Council on Monday that the security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has continued to deteriorate over the past three months, despite a lull in fighting between M23 rebels and the national army (FARDC). One of them told me to follow him and took me to a little house, where he raped me. Kabila also began removing ethnic Tutsis from his government, and took measures to weaken Rwandan military hegemony in eastern DRC. A humanitarian aid official working in North Kivu described the situation as catastrophic, adding that established displaced persons camps were only receiving the absolute bare minimum of support. In an attempt to ease the latest crisis, leaders of the East Africa Community (EAC) agreed to send a force to quell the fighting in eastern DR Congo, just months after that country joined the regional grouping. The two leaders, at a July 6 meeting in Angolas capital, agreed to a de-escalation process over fighting in the DRC. Many rounds fell and many people died. Residents reported that M23 were attacking Kitchanga at the time and captured the town in the following days. Rwandan President Kagame, 64, told the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency he has "no problem" with that. As East Africa's most advanced economy, Kenya has been keen to advance its business ties across the region through trade and investment. In Kanombe, which M23 forces captured in August 2022, former residents said that several hundred armed M23 fighters entered the town wearing military uniforms, sometimes with RDF insignia, and body armor. My husband couldnt stand what happened to me and left me. At the same time, nearly 26 million people, more than a quarter of the population, face food insecurity in the DRC. With smoking volcanoes, glassy lakes ringed by rippling hills and rainforests brimming with biodiversity, eastern Congo is known as one of the most beautiful places on earth. They raped all of us. I know they were FDLR because they are based in the Karambi forest near Rugari, and we know them. www.fpri.org Copyright 20002023. Survivors and witnesses identified M23 fighters on the basis of their uniforms and equipment, in some cases with the help of photographs published by the UN Group of Experts on Congo. Susan Beachy contributed research. An estimated 6.3 million people have been displaced within the country and since March 2022, more than 2.8 million have fled their homes in Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces due to insecurity. A church in Kitchanga, Masisi territory, damaged during attacks by the M23 in January 2023. She urged authorities to hold perpetrators to account and take steps to strengthen social cohesion in order to preserve stability in these areas. Access also has value. Rwanda hosted the prestigious Commonwealth meetings in June and is preparing to take in Britains deported asylum seekers. Human Rights Watch has documented several instances in which people from an ethnic Tutsi background or simply perceived as Tutsi or Rwandan faced hostility, threats and attacks by ethnic-based militia and the communities they claim to represent. In July, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta - who played a key role in DR Congo joining the EAC in March - was appointed to facilitate peace talks and oversee the implementation of a peace deal the two sides had agreed in Nairobi. Human Rights Watch documented 8 unlawful killings and 14 cases of rape by M23 fighters. Ugandan officials have accused Rwanda of using M23 to thwart its efforts against ADF, the Africa Center report noted, adding that the U.N. also "has implicated Uganda with aiding M23." [Meanwhile,] all along the road to Sake, makeshift camps housing up to 15,000 people each have appeared, and they have no latrines, shelter, no water, and no health care, the aid official said. Minerals have played a key role in more than three decades of armed conflict there. Human Rights Watch and Congo Research Group, Democratic Republic of Congo: Background and U.S. Relations, A New Approach for the UN to Stabilize the DRC, Stabilizing the DRC After an Apex Power Struggle, Hundreds of Thousands Flee Congo Violence, Five Things to Know About the Instability in Eastern Congo, Local Populations at Risk of Violence in the DRC, Second Ebola Patient Dies in Northwestern Congo, WHO Says, By entering your email and clicking subscribe, you're agreeing to receive announcements from CFR about our products and services, as well as invitations to CFR events. M23, short for the March 23 Movement, takes its name from a failed 2009 peace deal between the Congolese government and a now-defunct rebel group that had split off from the Congolese army and seized control of North Kivu's provincial capital, Goma, in 2012. Thousands of Congolese have taken to the streets to protest what they see as Rwandan aggression. In written observations shared with VOA by email, he called for a verifiable and enforceable conflict reduction initiative between Congo and its neighbors starting with Rwanda and an inclusive democratization process in Congo. Violence persisted in Mai-Ndombe, Kwilu and Kwango provinces, and has spread to Maluku in Kinshasa province, Ms. Pobee said. In a reversal of alliances, Kabila ordered all foreign troops out of the Congo and allowed Hutu armed groups to organize at the border once again. Ugandas President Yoweri Museveni has blamed ADF for suicide attacks in Kampala last October and November. You are also agreeing to our, More on The Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, estimated 5.7 million internally displaced people. They wanted to rape us, she said. Ruth Maclean reported from Dakar, Senegal, and Abdi Latif Dahir from Kigali, Rwanda. M23 is among more than 100 armed groups operating in the eastern DRC, an unsettled region where conflict has raged for decades but is escalating, especially in recent months. UN peacekeepers patrol the village of Logo in Djugu territory in eastern DR Congo. Geopolitics, ethnic and national rivalries, and competition over its natural. The eastern DRC has been plagued by fighting by at least 122 rebel groups according to a recent count by the United Nations for more than 25 years. Her husband is seeing a counselor to recover from the trauma of witnessing the rape. Some victims said that M23 rebels identified themselves as such or said they had come from Rwanda. Theyre among the latest victims of rising volatility in the eastern DRC. Attacks with explosive weapons in populated areas of North Kivu province have killed and injured civilians, damaged infrastructure, and exacerbated an already dire humanitarian crisis. They were armed and some had sticks, he said. The renewed hostilities involving the M23, the Congolese army, and various other armed groups have resulted in the displacement of about one million people since March 2022. Bintou Keita, who heads the UN Stabilization Mission in the . It countered by saying its neighbours had attacked its army, along with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a militia comprising mostly Hutu fighters. Ugandan officials have accused Rwanda of using M23 to thwart its efforts against ADF, the Africa Center report noted, adding that the U.N. also has implicated Uganda with aiding M23. U.N. investigators a decade earlier had claimed credible evidence of Rwandan involvement. The abundance of natural resourcesespecially precious mineralsfound in Congolese soil has globalized the conflict in eastern DRC. What losses did Russia suffer in the Wagner revolt? ", The Africa Center report noted there was "ample evidence to suggest that Ugandan- and Rwandan-backed rebel factions including M23 control strategic but informal supply chains running from mines in the Kivus into the two countries." These soldiers were previously members of the National Congress for the Defense of the People (Congrs national pour la dfense du peuple, CNDP), a former Rwanda-backed rebel group. The M23 was originally made up of soldiers who participated in a mutiny from the Congolese national army in April and May 2012. Satellite image: January 17, 2023, and May 13, 2023. She said the humanitarian response falls far short of the unprecedented level of need, welcoming the start of a system-wide scale-up response in eastern DRC for an initial period of three months. Violence continues to come in waves in Eastern DRC, and civilian casualties remain on the rise. FILE - Bintou Keita, head of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, briefs reporters after the Security Council meeting on the situation concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo on June 29, 2022. M23, short for the March 23 Movement, takes its name from a failed 2009 peace deal between the Congolese government and a now-defunct rebel group that had split off from the Congolese army and seized control of North Kivus provincial capital, Goma, in 2012. Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee, Assistant Secretary-General for Africa in the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, briefs members of the UN Security Council. The others left, and a woman went ahead with my children. In the past year, violence has increased once more as security forces battle against more than 100 armed groups in the east of the country, despite the presence of a large United Nations peacekeeping operation. Congo is fascinatingly rich, said Vava Tampa, a community organizer and founder of the rights group Save the Congo. Security analysts says the East African force and Monusco will need to coordinate closely if they are to be effective. As of spring 2023, indications have surfaced that M23 is drawing back some of its forces. Ever since, eastern Congo has been a bloody playground for armed groups, who have maimed, murdered and profited from the billions of dollars worth of minerals smuggled out. Technical issues and irregularities, including delays that affected over a million people,marredelection day. The diplomatic road map called for ceasing hostilities and for M23's immediate withdrawal. Other news 110 million people forcibly displaced as Sudan, Ukraine wars add to world refugee crisis, UN says . The African Union and United Nations should intensify efforts to help the Congolese government to better protect civilians at risk from attack, de Montjoye said. The ongoing conflict in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has cost approximately six million lives since 1996, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in world history. Analysis and graphics 2023 Human Rights Watch. MONUSCO was effective in its support of the Congolese army and M23 called off its initial campaign in 2013. The 21st century brought one more complication to peace efforts in the Democratic Republic of Congo: the proliferation of mining operations. According to many Congolese, these efforts reduce the incentive for Western countries to look too closely at its actions. They came to my house in the evening on February 20. But while fighting has eased in recent months, the . A 20-year-old woman from Kausa, in Masisi territory, said: When they entered, they said they would target those who had protected the FARDC [Congolese army]. And as long as violence is profitable and there is little international pressure to stop it, it will continue, several analysts said. Rebels from the M23 armed group have pulled back from some of the areas they occupied in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of a regional ceasefire initiative supposed to halt a conflict that has displaced nearly a million people. . Fashion designers from several parts of Africa have come together for a show in eastern Congo, hoping to inspire peace and creativity in a region long affected by conflict. A woman, 37, and her husband, 36, who fled the fighting around Kitchanga on January 19, said that about a dozen M23 fighters intercepted them and seven others, including three women. Despite denials by Kinshasa, rumors abound that it hired . More than 600 people have been killed by armed groups in the past three months, withCODECO, the Zairean militia and the ADF, being the main perpetrators of these atrocities. The rebels have made advances that include overrunning a Congolese military base in May and taking control of Bunagana, a trading town near the border with Uganda, in June. Since 1996, conflict in eastern DRC has led to approximately six million deaths. A 46-year-old mother of six, who fled Mushaki in Masisi territory on February 25 with her 75-year-old mother, ran into a group of 10 M23 rebels, who took their money. In November 2021, the M23 rebels were accused of attacking army positions in the Rutshuru territory in eastern DRC. The tensions erupted last week after M23 rebels attacked Congolese forces near Goma, the largest city in Congo's mineral-rich east, which borders Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and Tanzania. I am so ashamed. The UN Group of Experts, that monitors the arms embargo and sanctions violations in Congo, independently presented compelling evidence of Rwandan support to the M23 rebels. Among the Hutus were many genocidaires, those who had been responsible for killing millions of Tutsis. Survivors reported cases of M23 fighters raping women in front of their children and husbands, which adds to the trauma experienced by victims and erodes the social fabric of communities and families. However, the UN later approved the creation of a combat force with the mandate of carrying out targeted offensive operations to pacify armed groups in the region. The Rwandan army has deployed troops to eastern Congo to provide direct military support to the M23, helping them expand control over Rutshuru and neighboring Masisi territories. A 60-year-old woman said that FDLR fighters raped her as she was hiding from the M23 in the forest near her home in Rugari, in Rutshuru territory. Belgium first denied Congos political leaders the two-year transition period they asked for, then rushed to cast off the Congolese with no preparation to take over the reins of government. The UNHCR says more than 72,000 people have been displaced by the fighting in recent weeks. Earlier this year, there were deadly protests against the UN and these have resumed in recent days as the M23 has advanced. There is no specific figure on the number of troops that will be deployed. She joined The Times in 2019 after three and a half years covering West Africa for The Guardian. Rwanda responded by invading in 1998. Tensions and violence were also reported in Kindu, Tshopo and Katanga. Fashion designers from several parts of Africa have come together for a show in eastern Congo, hoping to inspire peace and creativity in a region long affected by conflict. The groups attacks on Congos government have surged since late last year, after it accused authorities of failing to observe a 2009 peace deal with the group and discriminating against people who speak the language Kinyarwanda. There is no one working there., January 17, 2023: 2023 Planet Labs PBC May 13, 2023: 2023 Planet Labs PBC. One of the most prominent rebel groups to emerge in the early 2000s was known as theMarch 23 Movement(M23), made up primarily of ethnic Tutsis.

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