Regional leaders have issued an urgent call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) within five days, amidst surging violence between government forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group.
On Saturday, a summit was held in Tanzania where leaders from the Rwandan side led by President Paul Kagame met with leaders of the DRC side led by President Felix Tshisekedi to confront the escalating situation. The final declaration of the summit urged both sides military to meet within five days to detail the technical measures taken in the implementation of the ceasefire. Leaders also campaigned for the urgent necessity of humanitarian corridors to evacuate the wounded and recover the dead.
The M23 group has seized vast areas of mineral-rich eastern DRC, including the strategic city of Goma, capital of North Kivu province. Fighting has now reached about 60 kilometers from Bukavu, the capital of neighbouring South Kivu. Reports indicate panic among residents, with people boarding up businesses and attempting to flee across the Rwanda border, causing chaos at crossing points.
Kenyan President William Ruto, the chairman of the East African Community, appealed to all sides to adhere to the ceasefire, indeed demanding an end by M23 to its attack and a stop by the DRC army on revenge attacks.
United Nations accuses Rwanda of sending 4,000 troops into DRC and of benefiting from the illegal mining of gold and coltan. Rwanda denies aiding M23, claiming that it is the DRC that houses the FDLR, the group responsible for the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
With M23 now controlling Goma and reportedly installing its own administration, fears of further destabilisation endure. UN rights chief Volker Turk warns that if immediate action is not taken, the humanitarian crisis could worsen as confirmed deaths approach nearly 3,000 and reports of sexual violence rise.
