M23 rebels start slow retreat out of Goma, Sake
Sultani Makenga, M23 rebel leader
M23 military commander Sultani Makenga said the Congolese rebels would start returning to withdrawing from the captured city of Goma on Thursday in line with a deal struck in Kampala with East African leaders, headed by Uganda’s Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.
The Congolese rebels say they are starting to pull out from the eastern cities of Goma and Sake as the United Nations issued a new call for an end to foreign support for the fighters to prevent the conflict spreading across the volatile region and beefed up their security force with 4000 forces.
On Tuesday, Makenga said the M23 had begun transferring arms, provisions and medical supplies from Goma to the Rutshuru territory north of the city, located along the Uganda and Rwanda border that has been their main stronghold since launching their uprising in April.
The UN Security Council call came as Kinshasa demanded new sanctions against Rwanda over its alleged backing for the M23 rebel group, which occupied Goma and Sake without any resistance from the UN troops stationed in Goma last week.
A French-drafted resolution passed at the UN meeting said the council would consider sanctions against more M23 leaders and “those providing external support”, although it did not name any country.
The DR Congo government also accused the M23 of widespread looting in Goma, while the Red Cross reported that it had buried dozens of people whose bodies were found in the streets following the rebels’ capture of the city more than a week ago.
The dramatic escalation in the M23 uprising since it was launched in April heightened international fears of a fresh conflict and a major humanitarian crisis, with reports of atrocities and tens of thousands of people displaced in the fighting.
The rebels agreed to withdraw from Goma after talks in Kampala this week, but have issued a list of demands to the government of President Joseph Kabila.
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This is not good news for the citizens of Goma. But the M23 are not ready to fight for a bigger cause and now France is pushing for a bigger UN force. 4000 is still not good enough to cover the huge area and this region is not Ivory Coast. If the UN mess up (which they have to some point, as locals do not trust them) they will alienate every major player around.
The citizens of Goma will not welcome M23 again if the FARDC torture them, even worse than before while the UN looks on, like you know they will.
Why withdraw when the DRC commander is boasting that peace cannot come from talks but from fighting. We all know that when the fighting gets tough, DRC soldiers get running. This is postponement of the necessary.
LETS ALL PRAY FOR THE RECENT DEVELOPMENTS THAT SEEM TO BE LEADING TO WITHDRAWAL OF FIGHTING. THE BIBLE CONDEMNS VIOLENCE AND IN WHATEVER CASE, THE PEOPLE OF GOD NEED PEACE WHEREVER THEY ARE AND IN WHATEVER CIRCUMSTANCES BECAUSE WAR BRINGS DEATH AND MISERY, RAPE, AMPUTATION AND DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY.
PRAY FOR THE CONTROL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT