In April, we met the Congolese government and the M23 rebel group forfirst time in an official call on the conditions for a ceasefire in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Despite the efforts of various actors, it is now clear that further talks between them are postponed to the future. At the same time, continued strife to spä on the wholeannual humanitarian crisis in the country.
Ceasefire negotiations between the DRC government and the M23 rebel group are stalling, according to a source close to the negotiations, who spoke to Reuters. Both parties met in early April for closed-door talks in Doha, Qatar. The talks, which were to continue through the second week of April, shoots up indefinitely, reports Reuters.
So far, 7 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands forced to flee in what is described as the worst escalation of the conflict in a decade, reports The Guardian.
AAprilthe meeting var a significant step EFTyours it was the first time the parties met in a joint conversation then The rebel group M23 began its offensive in the country's mineral-rich eastdifferent parts in January this year, and conquered the region North Kivus two largest cities – Goma and Bukavu.
April meetinget constitutes the second round of ceasefire talks in Qatar. In March, The President of the DRC, Félix Tshisekedi, and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, urged then to immediate ceasefire.
Rwanda accused by several international actors to support the M23 rebel group. According to a UN report presented to the Security Council last year, between 3 and 000 Rwandan soldiers are fighting alongside the M4 and are deployed in three regions in eastern North Kivu, the news agency reports. APThe UN Human Rights Council has also condemned Rwanda's support to the rebel group.
Following the meeting in April, M23 has withdrawn from the strategically important mining town of Walikale, which the group took control of in March, according to Reuters.
The diplomatic community uses both the carrot and the stick
The first meeting in Qatar came after cancelled peace talks between M23 and President Tshisekedi, which should have happened in March in Angola with the country's President João Lourenço as mediator.
M23 withdrew from the talks less than 24 hours before they were due to take place. It is said to have happened in protest against the EU's decision to impose sanctions on several of the group's leaders. According to a statement from the Congo River Alliance, of which M23 is a part, the EU is accused of "obstructing the long-awaited talks," the news agency reports Reuters.
On EU sanctions list There is M23's leader Bertrand Bisimwa, but also several Rwandan military commanders who are accused of supporting the rebels. Rwanda reacted to the sanctions by breaking diplomatic relations with Belgium. Belgium took similar measures in return and sharply criticized Rwanda's actions.
In parallel with the talks in Qatar, the African Union has also appointed a new mediator for the conflict, Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé, it reports. Africa News. After that Angola took a step back from the mediation process when President João Lourenço relinquished his role as chief mediator. He has, together with the African organizations EAC and SADC, been involved in several attempts to resolve the conflict in eastern DRC since 2022.
The fact that Qatar is the one to continue the mediation attempt is rooted in their economic interests in Rwanda, according to Ghanaian policy and security analyst Fidel Amakye Owusu, in a comment to DW, Owusu therefore believes that Qatar may pressure Kagame to find a solution.
A dire humanitarian situation is worsening
The conflict has contributed to one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Even before the latest escalation of the conflict, an estimated seven million people were displaced within the country. Since January, more than half a million more people have been forced to flee as a result of the fighting, reports UN refugee agency.
UN Human Rights Council started in February an investigation into possible human rights violations directed against both sides in the conflict. The investigation includes allegations of rape and extrajudicial executions. At the same time is in progress Large outbreak of smallpox in DR Congo, the response to which has been made more difficult by the fighting.
Update: On Wednesday, April 23, M23 announced that they were pausing the fighting and on Friday the news came that Rwanda and the DRC, after a meeting in Washington agreed to negotiate a peace treatyThe goal should be to have a draft ready by May 2nd. In a joint statement The parties commit to respecting each other's territorial integrity, to working towards improved regional integration, and to strengthening work on mineral trade chains in partnership with the US government and investors.
Some of the parties in the mediation attempts in eastern DRC
The fighting in eastern DR Congo has been going on for decades and has its roots in the aftermath of the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, as well as the fight for control over the enormous mineral resources in the region.
M23, a rebel group consisting mostly of Congolese Tutsis, is only one of about 100 militia groups active in the country. The group's name, Mouvement Du 23 Mars, refers to a peace agreement that the DR Congo signed in March 2009 with militias in the country.
M23 which was formed in 2012, says he wants to protect Congolese Tutsis and other minorities and defending them against Hutu rebel groups who fled to the DRC at the end of the Rwandan war.
The group was last at its most aktiv between 2012–2013, taking over towns in North Kivu. Fighting flared up again in 2021, and since then the conflict in eastern Congo has escalated.
Congo River Alliance (Alliance Fleuve Congo, AFC) is one political-military coalition in the DRK which was formed in 2023. The alliance is led by Crow Nangaa, former head of the DRC's Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) from 2015 to 2021. M23 is a prominent member of the coalition.
SADC (Southern African Development Community) is a cooperative organization for 16 countries in southern Africa. SADC, consists of 16 member states: Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
EAC (East African Community) is a regional cooperation organization for countries in East Africa. EAC, consists of eight member states: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Somalia.