Congo Charges a Rebel Group of “ethnic Cleansing” in the East of the Country

Jacquemain Shabani, the interior minister, condemned the “massive arrival of foreign populations” in North Kivu province’s Rutshuru and Masisi areas, where residents were “expelled by violence.”

Shabani declared, “This is what ethnic cleansing is.”
Congo made the charge after M23 last week named administrators in the regions it says it controls.

In the mineral-rich eastern Congo, close to the Rwandan border, over 100 armed factions have been fighting for territory. Since the M23 rebel faction has returned, the bloodshed has intensified. With over 7 million displaced people, many of whom are inaccessible to relief, the conflict has resulted in one of the worst humanitarian disasters in history.

The March 23 Movement, or M23, is a rebel military organization that split from the Congolese army more than ten years ago. It is primarily composed of ethnic Tutsis. When its fighters captured Goma, the biggest city in eastern Congo on the Rwandan border, in 2012, the group gained notoriety.

Experts from the United States and the United Nations accuse Rwanda of providing military support to M23, while Congo claims Rwanda has committed war crimes in the east. Although Rwanda disputes the claim, it acknowledged in February that it maintains troops and missile systems in eastern Congo to protect its security, citing an increase in Congolese forces close to the border. Up to 4,000 Rwandan military are thought to be present in Congo, according to U.N. analysts.

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