Human Rights

Congo-Rwanda Tensions Surge Amid Rising Civilian Deaths

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UNITED NATIONS / KINSHASA – Security in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is rapidly deteriorating, with clashes between Rwanda-backed M23 rebels and Congo’s national army causing rising civilian casualties, according to United Nations officials and Security Council members.

The unrest continues despite a U.S.-backed peace agreement signed in June between Rwanda and Congo and ongoing negotiations between M23 and Congolese representatives in Qatar. During an emergency UN Security Council meeting called by the United States on Friday, members highlighted the widening human rights crisis.

“Regrettably, the evolution of the security situation on the ground has not matched the progress achieved on the diplomatic front,” UN Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee told the council. “The number of civilian casualties has risen dramatically, and reports of rape and forced recruitment of children persist.”

Violence in eastern Congo has roots dating back to the mid-1990s, when the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide spilled across the border, sparking multiple wars and local conflicts. The current M23 rebellion represents the latest in a series of armed groups allegedly supported by Rwanda to protect strategic interests in the mineral-rich region. Rwanda officially denies backing the rebels.

M23 advances earlier this year brought fighting dangerously close to the strategic city of Goma, a key trading hub on the Rwanda-DRC border, intensifying U.S. diplomatic efforts to curb the conflict. Despite these efforts, M23 reportedly killed at least 319 civilians in July across four villages, according to the UN human rights office. The affected areas were strongholds of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), linked to perpetrators of the 1994 genocide.

Congo has agreed under the U.S.-mediated peace deal to neutralize FDLR forces. Zenon Ngay Mukongo, Congo’s ambassador to the UN, described the alleged M23 attacks as targeted ethnic killings and called for stronger sanctions against those responsible.

U.S. Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea warned that ongoing violence undermines both the DRC-Rwanda peace agreement and the DRC-M23 declaration of principles. “The United States will hold accountable spoilers to peace, and we call on council members to do the same,” Shea said, noting intelligence suggesting Rwanda continues to support M23 operations this month.

Rwanda’s UN ambassador, Martin Ngoga, countered that Congolese forces had escalated attacks on M23 positions but affirmed support for peace processes. He called for an independent investigation into the civilian deaths, describing allegations against Rwanda as “grave and unfounded.”

Other eastern provinces face worsening insecurity. In Ituri, the Codeco and Zaire rebel groups have killed dozens of civilians since July, while the Islamist Allied Democratic Forces have killed at least 185 and kidnapped hundreds more. UN officials estimate that about 5.9 million Congolese remain displaced, creating one of the world’s most urgent humanitarian crises.

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