The Congolese army on Tuesday accused the Rwanda-backed M23 militia of launching “multiple attacks” on its positions in the east, where days of clashes have put a U.S.-brokered cease-fire in jeopardy.
Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo – a mineral-rich region bordering Rwanda but scarred by more than 30 years of violence from nonstate armed groups – has been the epicenter of renewed fighting.
The M23, which resumed its insurgency in late 2021, has seized large swaths of territory with Rwandan support, deepening a humanitarian crisis. The conflict flared again early this year when the rebels captured the strategic cities of Goma and Bukavu, installing their own administrations.
The Congolese government and the M23 signed a declaration of principles on July 19 in Qatar that included a “permanent cease-fire” aimed at halting the conflict.
It followed a separate peace deal between the Congolese and Rwandan governments signed in Washington the previous month.
