Fresh Congo fighting threat to regional peace

May 20, 2013

A new wave of fierce fighting that has broken out in Democratic Republic of Congo is feared to spark off war in the region.

By Patson Baraire

A new wave of fierce fighting has broken out in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) after the army, Forces Armee de la Republic Democratique du Congo (FARDC), carried out an early Monday morning attack on an M23 Movement base in the Eastern part of the country, sparking off a fresh war with the rebels.

The fighting is raging on in Muningi about 10km from the North Kivu capital city of Goma which has created fears that DR Congo President Joseph Kabila started the war with hopes that the UN Intervention Brigade which has since been stationed in Goma, will be forced to join in.

A member of the M23 publicity committee based in Bunagana, Diana Katabarwa confirmed the fighting and accused Kabila of joining forces with Rwanda rebel group Forces du Liberation Rwanda (FDLR) to plunge the nation back into bloodshed.

 "The fighting is just 10 kilometers away from Goma where Kabila forces joined together with the Rwanda rebel group to attack our bases but we have registered no losses so far," she said. .

 Katabarwa said that FARDC and FDLR attacked M23 positions in Kanyarucinya but they were successfully repulsed and pushed them back up to Muja area which is sparsely populated.

She also noted that the DRC forces were planning to launch an attack from Tongo in Rutshuru on M23 positions in order to cut them off from accessing an escape route.

Political analysts told New Vision that the fighting is a product of the collapse of peace talks between the two rival camps which were going on at Speke Resort Hotel Munyonyo in Kampala, Uganda.

When New Vision visited Ishasha border area on the DR Congo - Uganda border at midday on Monday, some Congolese nationals had started assembling at the border entry point to cross to Uganda where they intended to take refugee.

By press time, no refugees had arrived at Matanda Refugee Transit Center where the registration for the refugees takes place.

An official found at the venue said that they expected to a huge turn up of refugees since some of them had merely returned to Congo when the war had subsided.

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});