Rwandan defense forces incursion into DRC, authorities say

The Democratic Republic of Congo once again accuses Rwanda of supporting the M23 rebels.

Tuesday, October 24, in a tweet, government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya published some drone images, which appear to indicate incursions by the Rwandan armed forces into the city of Tongo and Rutshuru in North Kivu, in the east of the DRC to support elements of the M23. 

The M23 rebels seized swaths of territory last year which they continue to occupy in the province of North Kivu. Kinshasa criticizes Kigali for its support for this predominantly Tutsi rebellion, Kigali in return accusing Kinshasa of collusion with the FDLR, an armed group of Rwandan Hutu origin.

These areas have experienced an upsurge in violence since October 1, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA. Nearly 85,000 people had to flee various localities to find refuge, particularly in places like Mweso, Nyanzale, Kitshanga, Kalemba, Pinga, Kibachiro, Kahira, Ngingwe, Kyatembe and other localities located in Masisi territory.

For the government spokesperson, this presence of the RDF favored the massacres of the populations in the villages of Ruzenze, Bishishe, Marangara. On October 18, 2023 in Kinshasa, President Félix Tshisekedi meeting with senior officers of the Congolese army reiterated his determination to put an end to the M23 movement and its allies militarily.

The UN recently expressed concern about a risk of “direct confrontation” between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, at loggerheads since the reappearance at the end of 2021 in eastern Congo of the M23 rebellion.