Rwanda-Backed M23 Rebels To Withdraw From Strategic City

Rwanda-backed M23 Rebels to Withdraw from Strategic City, One Week After Seizing It Democratic Republic of the Congo / Rwanda Rwanda-backed M23 rebels will withdraw from the strategic eastern Congolese town of Uvira after seizing it last week, the group announced Tuesday, a move framed as a response to US mediation and a test of fragile peace efforts aimed at halting renewed escalation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Al Jazeera reported. Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC) rebel coalition that includes M23, said fighters would leave Uvira in South Kivu province “as per United States mediation request.” The coalition described the withdrawal as a “unilateral trust-building measure” intended to give the Doha peace process – referring to the Qatari-mediated peace negotiations between the DRC and M23 – “the maximum chance to succeed.” It called on “guarantors of the peace process” to ensure the town’s demilitarization, protect civilians and infrastructure, and monitor the ceasefire through the deployment of a neutral force. However, reports from the strategic town suggested that fighters were still visible in Uvira. The AFC reportedly warned that the Congolese army and its allies had previously “exploited similar withdrawals to retake territory and target civilians perceived as sympathetic to the rebels.” The seizure of Uvira last week dealt a blow to a US-brokered peace agreement signed days earlier in Washington, DC, by Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame, as well as to a separate framework agreement reached in November in Doha between M23 and the Congolese government. Located on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, Uvira is a key administrative and military hub and lies on a central trade corridor bordering Burundi, whose forces have operated in eastern Congo for years, the Financial Times wrote. The advance heightened fears of regional spillover and the exacerbation of a humanitarian crisis that has already displaced more than 200,000 people in South Kivu this month. Thousands of Congolese troops, allied militias, and soldiers retreated as M23 forces advanced under drone and artillery fire. Several hundred Burundian soldiers were reported killed, and nearly 1,000 captured. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Rwanda of a “clear violation of the Washington Accords” and said the United States would “take action to ensure promises made to the president are kept.” Rwanda has repeatedly denied backing M23 and claimed its forces crossed into Congo only for “defensive” reasons. It accused Kinshasa and its allies of repeated ceasefire violations. Analysts noted that the Uvira offensive and subsequent withdrawal pledge reflected “a negotiating tactic” by M23 to gain leverage in talks, underscoring how easily recent diplomatic gains could unravel.