Fear of major war in Congo – Rwanda is fighting alongside rebels, according to a UN report

The experts state that the Rwandan government is in reality in control of the rebel group, which has recently occupied large areas in eastern Congo and introduced a parallel regime in the cities they have taken control of.

Rwanda has never admitted that the country supports M23, although UN experts have also previously presented documentation that Rwandan government forces have helped the rebels. This time, the experts have presented new documentation in the form of verified photos, video footage, drone footage, eyewitness accounts and intelligence information.

The films and images show rows of armed men in uniform, equipped with artillery and armored vehicles with radars and anti-aircraft systems, as well as trucks for transporting soldiers.

Gives Rwanda responsibility

This confirms that Rwanda’s government army is systematically operating on the other side of the border, and that Rwanda is responsible for actions committed by M23, they state.

The group, which launched its last offensive in Congo in 2022, has previously been accused of extensive human rights violations.

Since the beginning of the year, the rebels have carried out an extensive offensive in several areas of North Kivu, and the help from Rwanda has played a significant role in M23 being able to take control of such large areas, according to the report.

It was written in April at the behest of the UN Security Council and was then sent to the council’s sanctions committee. In June, it was forwarded to the council’s member states.

Child soldiers

The report also states that children as young as twelve have been recruited from “almost all refugee camps in Rwanda”. They have been sent to training camps in rebel-controlled areas where they are said to have received training from Rwandan soldiers and M23 rebels.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame said as late as June 20 that Rwanda is ready to fight Congo if necessary. In an interview with France 24, however, he refrained from answering whether Rwandan soldiers are present in the Congo.

For months, the US, France, Belgium and the EU have asked Rwanda to withdraw its forces and surface-to-air missiles from Congolese territory and stop supporting M23.

Uganda-støtte

The report also accuses the Ugandan army of having given support to M23. The fear is thus increasing of a major war between several countries in the region.

Ugandan soldiers were part of a regional peacekeeping force deployed to Congo in November 2022 to monitor a ceasefire with M23. However, last year the force was asked to withdraw because Congo believed it was ineffective.

A spokesman for Uganda’s armed forces claims to the Reuters news agency that the accusations are false and that they come at a time when relations between Ugandan and Congolese forces are at their best.

– It would be crazy for us to destabilize the same area that we are sacrificing everything to make stable, says Deo Akiiki.

Hutu rebels

Rwanda, for its part, accuses Congo of funding and fighting side by side with Hutu rebels, who it accuses of having attacked Tutsis in both Rwanda and Congo.

Congo has been affected by war and conflict for decades. Uganda and Rwanda invaded the country in 1996 and 1998 respectively because they believed they were forced to defend themselves once morest local militia groups that used the Congo as a base. Uganda continues to carry out operations once morest a Ugandan rebel group together with Congolese soldiers.

The conflict between Tutsis and Hutus has deep roots. The conflict peaked in 1994 when between 800,000 and 1 million Tutsi and moderate Hutus were killed by mainly Hutu in Rwanda within a few weeks.