The Congo-Rwanda Peace has threatened as fighting continues, warns UNSC

(Bloomberg) safety in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is in the midst of numerous conflicts, including clashes between Rwanda-supported M23 rebels and the army of Congo, the United Nations and UN security councilors, warned on Friday. The violence continues despite a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Congo signed in June and continuous talks between the M23 and the Congo in Qatar, councilors said at an emergency meeting called by the US. “Unfortunately, the evolution of the security situation on the ground did not match the progress reached 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 rape and forced recruitment of children in armed groups continues. Violence has continued in the east of the Congo since mid -1990s as the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide spread across the border, causing several wars and local conflicts, some of which continue to this day. The current M23 rebellion is the most recent incarnation of multiple proxy groups supported by Rwanda to address its safety issues and protect its interests in the mineral-rich region, although Rwanda denies supporting the rebels. Earlier this year, the M23 provoked international outrage when it took control of Goma and Bukavu’s most important trade centers on the Congo border with Rwanda. The occupation has resulted in the Trump administration doubling the US efforts to stop the conflict. ‘Despite the US pressure’ continuous battles’, M23 is still earning incremental profits, and with the support of members of the Rwandan army, Pobee killed at least 319 civilians in four towns, according to the UN human rights. The villages were fortresses of a group known as the democratic forces for the liberation of Rwanda, or FDLR, which has links with the Rwandan Hutu offenders of the genocide against the Tutsis. Rwanda and M23 have long complained about the Congolese collaboration with FDLR rebels. Congo agreed to neutralize the group as part of the US supported peace agreement. Congo’s ambassador in the UN, Zenon Ngay Mukongo, said the alleged M23 slags were targeted ethnic murders and asked the council to strengthen sanctions for those responsible. The ongoing battles in the East are contrary to “the spirit and letter of both the BI-Later DRC-Rwanda Peace Agreement and the DRC-M23 statement of principles,” UN US ambassador Dorothy Shea told the Council. “The United States will hold accountable spoilers to peace, and we are calling on councilors to do the same,” she said, adding that the US has intelligence that Rwanda has continued to support M23 attacks this month. Rwanda’s UN ambassador, Martin Ngoga, accused the army of the Congo of attacks and strengthened his positions against the M23, but said his government was still supporting the two peace processes. Ngoga said the meeting took place “amid serious and unfounded allegations against my country,” and he asked an independent investigation into the murders in the Hutu villages. Violence in other parts of the east of the Congo is also on the rise, councilors said. In Ituri Province, security has been “deteriorating” since July, with the Codeco and Zaire rebels killing several civilians, the UN’s Pobee said. The Islamic -related democratic forces have also killed civilians since the beginning of July 185 and hundreds have been abducted over the same period, she said. About 5.9 million Congoles are currently being displaced due to conflict, making it “one of the sharpest humanitarian situations in the world,” Pobee said. More stories like these are available on Bloomberg.com © 2025 Bloomberg LP