War in Eastern Congo : Kinshasa went to complain to the UN against Rwanda, which it accuses of having sent new troops to the DRC

War in Eastern Congo : Kinshasa went to complain to the UN against Rwanda, which it accuses of having sent new troops to the DRC

On Sunday, the UN Security Council called an emergency meeting on the situation in eastern Congo. Congolese authorities accused Rwanda of having sent troops onto the Congolese soil in broad daylight. For the first time, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called on Rwanda to “withdraw its troops” from the DRC. On Monday, Goma fell into the hands of the rebels.

INFO SOS Médias Burundi

The city of Goma is threatened by hostilities between the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo) and its allies and the M23 rebels. According to a reporter from SOS Médias Burundi, water and electricity are cut off and almost all businesses are closed. This happens at a time when the UN mission in Congo, MONUSCO, has repatriated a significant portion of its staff. This measure was taken in response to the rapid deterioration of security in the region.

The relocated staff mainly includes administrative employees and other teams who can work remotely. However, staff essential to humanitarian operations and the protection of populations remain in post to ensure the continuity of priority missions, such as food aid, medical assistance, and shelter for people in danger.

This decision comes in a context marked by an intensification of clashes in the Masisi territory, particularly on the roads linking Mweso and Sake. The UN says that this approach aims to guarantee the safety of its staff while maintaining essential aid to the affected populations.

Monusco employees flee to Rwanda on board buses as the city of Goma falls into the hands of the rebels, January 27, 2025, DR

Congolese Minister of Foreign Affairs Thérèse Wagner traveled to New York to the United Nations headquarters to participate in the emergency meeting of the Security Council. She was the one who requested this meeting last Friday. Although it was scheduled for this Monday, this meeting was brought forward to this Sunday. The head of Congolese diplomacy announced that the clashes have been continuing since this Sunday morning north of Goma, the capital of North Kivu.

“The Rwandan army entered our soil in broad daylight,” she accused. “A declaration of war that does not say its name,” according to Mrs. Wagner.

“As I stand before you, an attack of unprecedented gravity is taking place before the eyes of the world. New Rwandan troops have crossed markers 12 and 13 of the border post separating Goma and Gisenyi (Rwanda), entering our territory in broad daylight in an open and deliberate violation of our national sovereignty. This is a frontal aggression, a declaration of war that no longer hides behind diplomatic artifices,” complained Thérèse Wagner before the United Nations Security Council.

Sanctions

The head of the Congolese diplomacy called on the UN to take sanctions against Rwanda.

“The Security Council must impose targeted sanctions including the freezing of assets and the travel ban, not only against the identified members of the chain of command of the Rwandan armed forces, but also against the political decision-makers responsible for this aggression,” she said before calling for “a total embargo on the export of all minerals labeled as Rwandan, in particular coltan and gold”.

“The UN Secretary-General calls on the M23 to immediately stop its hostile actions and to withdraw from the occupied areas. He urges the Rwandan defense forces to stop supporting the M23 and to withdraw from the Congolese territory,” announced MONUSCO on Sunday.

Border Security

Congolese armed forces reinforce security on borders with Rwanda.

Since Sunday evening, Congolese armed forces have reinforced security on the borders with Rwanda. According to the civil society in Nyiragongo territory, “there are many FARDC special forces on the border at Borne 13 in the Munigi groupment in the Bukumu chiefdom to try to secure the city of Goma and the territory of Nyiragongo.”

In addition, Congolese leaders have closed the “petite barrière” with Rwanda linking the cities of Gisenyi in Rwanda and Goma in Congo.

“All activities have been suspended since Sunday and no traffic on the “petite barrière” is visible in this part of the DRC,” noted a reporter from SOS Médias Burundi.

New war displaced persons in North Kivu (SOS Médias Burundi)

Several residents have crossed the border with Rwanda to seek refuge in that country, as have displaced people settled in the Kanyaruchinya and Don Bosco sites who have headed towards the city of Goma, already crowded with war displaced people.

Rwanda’s response

In a statement released on Sunday, the Rwandan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the fierce fighting around Goma was triggered by the constant violation of the ceasefire by the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo), the Hutu-FDLR genocidaires, local militias maintained by Congolese authorities, European mercenaries and the FDNB (Burundi National Defense Force), the SADC (Southern African Development Community) force and MONUSCO troops.

Kenyan President William Ruto, who currently chairs the East African economic bloc, EAC, has announced that he will convene a meeting of regional leaders this week to discuss the situation in eastern Congo.

The M23 is a former Tutsi rebellion that took up arms again in late 2021, accusing Congolese authorities of not having respected their commitments on the reintegration of its fighters.
Congolese authorities remain convinced that it benefits from support from Rwanda, which the Rwandan government continues to dismiss out of hand.

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A battle tank from the Kinshasa coalition in the vicinity of Goma (SOS Médias Burundi)

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