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Rebels still occupy east DR Congo as withdrawal deadline lapses

Friday March 31 2023
Ugandan soldier,

Members of Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces position themselves on the Ugandan side of the border town in Bunagana, DR Congo while awaiting deployment on March 30, 2023, the day M23 rebels were supposed to withdraw under a regional peace initiative. PHOTO | GLODY MURHABAZI | AFP

By AFP

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) rebels continued to occupy strategic positions in the east of the country late Thursday, the day M23 militants were supposed to withdraw under a regional peace initiative.

Among these key sites is the town of Bunagana on the Ugandan border, where a Ugandan contingent of the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) again delayed their deployment to ensure rebels' withdrawal.

Read: Uganda sends 5,000 troops to DRC

Early Thursday, an EAC delegation left Goma, the main city in the country's east led by the force commander Kenyan General Jeff Nyagah.

The entry of the Ugandan soldiers seemed imminent in the afternoon but after attending a meeting between the EAC and the M23, General Nyagah indicated in the early evening without explanation that their arrival was now planned for Friday instead.

The deployment was initially scheduled for Wednesday.

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Soldiers.

Ugandan soldiers in DRC. PHOTO | XINHUA

A South Sudan contingent was also scheduled to turn up but has yet to arrive.

M23 captures more territories

M23 rebels have captured swathes of territory in Eastern DRC since re-emerging from dormancy in late 2021 and have nearly encircled the trade hub of Goma. 

Read: Fighting erupts close to DRC's Goma

Bunagana, a commercial crossroads on the Ugandan border was the first major rebel capture falling to the M23 in June last year. The rebels have since taken over other towns in the Rutshuru and Masisi regions.

EAC decided last June to create a military force in addition to the UN’s force Monusco, with the aim of bringing peace to Eastern DRC which has been plagued by armed violence for nearly 30 years.

Senegalese peacekeepers serving under Monusco

Monusco forces prepare to go on patrol in Goma. PHOTO | ALEXIS HUGUET | AFP

UN chief decries violence

The UN rights chief on Thursday decried the surging violence in Eastern DRC, with rampant sexual violence and more than 1,300 people including over 100 children killed since October.

Read: Violence hindering DRC aid work: UN

“The M23 insurgents along with the Islamist-aligned Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a notorious militia called CODECO as well as Zaire and Nyatura armed groups, are continuing to perpetrate despicable attacks against the civilian population with complete impunity,” Volker Turk said in Geneva.

March 30 was supposed to mark the end of the withdrawal of all armed groups, according to a timetable adopted in mid-February by the EAC.

In addition, after several other unfulfilled announcements, a ceasefire should have come into effect on March 7 but has not been respected.

The M23 has announced its withdrawal from certain localities, but these announcements have been described as a "diversion" by the DRC army.

DRC claims the M23 is backed by neighbouring Rwanda.

Independent UN experts, the US and several other Western nations have also concluded that the M23 is backed by Rwanda, though Kigali denies the accusation. 

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