DR Congo Jets Bomb M23 Bases in North Kivu
Officials claim that on Tuesday, the DR Congo's military utilized recently deployed jets to pound M23 strongholds in the country's east, causing some citizens of rebel-held territory to flee across the border.
DR Congo Jets Bomb M23 Bases in North Kivu
Officials claim that on Tuesday, the DR Congo’s military utilized recently deployed jets to pound M23 strongholds in the country’s east, causing some citizens of rebel-held territory to flee across the border.
M23 first gained notoriety in 2012 when it briefly took control of Goma, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), before being expelled.
After going inactive for several years, the organization resumed hostilities in late 2021, alleging, among other things, that the DRC had broken a promise to include them in the army.
In recent weeks, the M23 rebels in North Kivu province have decisively increased the area they control by defeating the Congolese army.
Relations between the DRC and its smaller neighbor Rwanda, which Kinshasa alleges of supporting the M23, have been severely damaged as a result of their comeback.
An anonymous Congolese security officer stated on Tuesday that jets were bombarding the rebel-held North Kivu region of Tchanzu and would do so “all day.”
The M23 conquered Bunagana, a crucial town on the Ugandan border, in June. A resident of the town confirmed to AFP that planes were attacking the region.
He described how town inhabitants were escaping across the border into Uganda by saying, “It’s every man for himself.”
Local civil society activist Damien Sebuzanane added that people of Bunagana had left.
The M23 captured a number of towns along a crucial highway leading to Goma over the weekend, prompting the DRC to send two Sukhoi-25 planes to the volatile east.
On Monday, one of the aircraft entered Rwandan airspace without permission, though Kinshasa said the mistake was unintentional.
AFP discovered an unreleased United Nations study in August that suggested Rwandan participation with the M23 despite official denials from Kigali.
According to the article, the M23 intends to seize Goma in order to force political concessions from the Kinshasa administration.
