While on Saturday October 29, in eastern DRC, the towns of Rutshuru and Kiwanja were taken by M23 rebels, fighting continued on Sunday October 30 and several sources claim that the army launched a counter- offensive on M23 positions with the aim of reconquering the entities taken by the rebels. These have been gaining ground on several fronts for a week, forcing tens of thousands of inhabitants to move towards Goma, in particular, 70 km away.
The capture of Rutshuru further aggravates the situation in the city, as Gentil Karabuka, president of Kisigari’s civil society, explains:
The population initially remained holed up in the houses. The M23 rebels entered the settlements firing shots in the air. They also looted the kiosks. The cities of Rustshuru and Kiwanja are areas which were occupied by the DRC Armed Forces and which received thousands and thousands of displaced people and whose M23 rebels destroyed the shelters of the displaced people in stadiums. These displaced people were forced to return to their villages and therefore currently there is not only fear but also an obligation to live with the new occupants.
Congolese civil society concerned for the inhabitants of Rutshuru
Civil society in Goma calls on the population for general mobilization on Monday, October 31 to protest against the breakthrough of the armed movement, described as ” fictional rebellion “, behind which the Rwandan government is hiding, according to Placide Nzilamba. The technical secretary of civil society in North Kivu wants to ” mobilize the international community “.
We want to mobilize the international community, in particular the EU and the United Nations Security Council, to kindly take a look at the DRC, bruised by Rwanda and its allies.
Civil society calls for mobilization to raise awareness against the M23
Kinshasa accused Rwanda of supporting the armed movement and reported a ” massive arrival of elements of the Rwandan army to support the M23 “. Kigali says note with regret » the decision to expel the Rwandan ambassador, but continues to deny any presence on Congolese soil. And this, despite the confidential report of the United Nations of last August attesting to the support of the Rwandan soldiers to the M23, explains the deputy spokesman of the Rwandan government Alain Mukuralinda:
Rwanda does not want to go to auction. There are no retaliatory measures that will be taken. There is no massive arrival of the Rwandan army to support the M23 as the government claims.
Rwanda regrets expulsion of ambassador but denies involvement in DRC and says there will be ‘no retaliatory measures’
► To read also: DRC: the Ruzizi plain is again threatened by armed groups [1/5]