The US Treasury Department announced on Thursday, July 25, a series of sanctions targeting a coalition of Congolese rebel groups, including the March 23 Movement (M23), accused of seeking to overthrow the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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The coalition, the Congo River Alliance (AFC), is accused by Washington of increasing instability in the country and the displacement of civilians, particularly in the east of the country, where fighting has been regular for more than twenty years.
The M23 movement, which Kinshasa accuses of being supported by neighboring Rwanda, is already the target of a series of sanctions, both by the United States and at the United Nations level, for ” his long-standing destabilization of the Congolese province of North Kivu and for being responsible for human rights violations “, recalled the Commerce Department in its press release.
” The decisions taken today reinforce our resolve to hold accountable those who seek perpetual instability, violence and the harming of civilians in order to achieve their political goals. “, said the US Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, quoted in the press release. We condemn the AFC and its members, including the M23, who are fueling a bloody conflict and exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in eastern DRC. “, he added.
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Several sanctions targeting the AFC
The sanctions target in particular: Bertrand Bisimwa, the president of the M23and Charles Sematama, the military leader of another armed group, Twirwanehoas well as the former president of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) of Congo, Corneille Yobeluo Nangaa, accused by Washington of having played a key role in the postponement of the elections, initially scheduled for 2016, until 2018.
The sanctions provide, as always, for the freezing of all assets held, directly or indirectly, in UNITED STATES by the targeted entities or persons, as well as the prohibition for any American company or citizen to trade with the sanctioned persons, natural or legal.
In a separate statement, the State Department confirmed that it is participating in the announced sanctions, which also include a ban on the targeted individuals entering the United States.
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