In retribution for Rwanda’s purported support of M23 rebels in the Congo’s eastern provinces, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has given Rwandan ambassador Vincent Karenga 2 days to leave the country.
“This is largely attributable, in part, to (Karenga’s) country’s persistence in attacking the DRC as well as supporting the terrorist movements of the M23,” government spokesman Patrick Muyaya stated in a televised briefing Saturday evening.
The rebel outfit, which Congolese authorities accuse Rwanda of supporting but Rwanda dismisses, seized Kiwanja in eastern Congo on Saturday, essentially cutting North Kivu’s capital Goma off from the province’s upper half.
Three Kiwanja residents told Reuters that after a brief exchange of fire on Saturday morning, hordes of combatants stormed the town with little resistance.
Four peacekeepers were injured in the fighting, according to a United Nations intervention brigade that has been assisting government forces. The statement made no mention of the town’s fate.
“Attacks on United Nations peacekeeping forces may constitute war crimes,” it stated. “(The mission) calls on this rebel outfit to immediately halt all aggression and warns that it will retort vehemently if further aggression occurs.”
Residents said the Congolese army regiment that was protecting the town had left the day before. To keep fighting away from towns as well as protect civilians, the army has executed strategic retreats from populated regions.
The army withdrew Saturday from locations at Rumangabo, their biggest camp in the region, according to Kivu Security Tracker, and M23 had encircled the local UN peacekeeper camp as well as the Virunga National Park.
In a WhatsApp message, Saidi Balikwisha Emil, a member of North Kivu’s regional parliament, said, “The fall of Kiwanja and elsewhere is a national disgrace, particularly for those of us who devote entire days on social media placing blame on our army.”
“Kiwanja is a significant entity that provides a direct route to Goma,” he appended.
General Sylvain Ekenge, the army’s national spokesman, and Colonel Ndjike Kaiko, the army’s spokesman for North Kivu, did not immediately respond to requests for clarification.
Following the revival of confrontations between the army and the M23 militants, unrest in North Kivu has broken months of tranquility in eastern Congo.
According to the United Nations, army forces have clashed with rebel fighters numerous times since fighting resumed on Oct. 20, reportedly killing at least four civilians as well as forcing more than 23,000 individuals to flee their homes. Both sides have accused the other of starting the fighting.
M23 was the latest in a string of ethnic Tutsi-led uprisings to rise against Congolese forces when it developed in 2012.
