Kenya announced on Wednesday (November 2nd) the deployment of troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as part of a regional military intervention aimed at supporting the Congolese regime in the face of active rebellions in eastern DRC, announced the Kenyan President William Ruto.
“As neighbours, the destiny of the DRC is linked to ours“, launched President Ruto in Nairobi during a ceremony, recalling that the regional force must also include soldiers from Burundi, Uganda and South Sudan, sent “on a mission to protect humanity“. “We will not allow armed groups, criminals and terrorists to rob us of our common prosperitycontinued the Kenyan head of state.
Insurgencies by armed groups
Military sources in Nairobi declined to reveal the number of Kenyan soldiers involved in the intervention, citing “obvious security issues“. The Democratic Republic of Congo is trying to counter the insurgencies of dozens of armed groups that are proliferating in the east of this immense country.
A UN law enforcement mission, MONUSCO, is already present in the DRC. The M23 (“March 23 Movement“), a former Tutsi rebellion which took up arms again at the end of 2021, gained ground on October 29 in eastern DRC, seizing in particular two towns, Kiwanja and Rutshuru-centre, located on National Road 2 , strategic axis serving Goma, capital of the province of North Kivu.
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Return of tension
After months of tension and accusations of “assaultKinshasa, which accuses Kigali of supporting the M23 rebellion, decided on Saturday to expel the Rwandan ambassador to the DRC.
A report by experts commissioned by the United Nations Security Council detailed Rwanda’s direct involvement, “unilaterally or jointly with M23 fightersin eastern Congo. The renewed tension has alarmed the international community, with the African Union calling for a ceasefire.