The Congolese armed forces have accused the M23 rebel group of breaching a recent ceasefire, claiming that they killed at least 50 people in a massacre earlier this week and warning that the army would defend civilians from attacks.
Thursday's statement from DRC government forces came less than a week after regional leaders issued a ceasefire ultimatum at a summit in Angola, saying the M23 needed to withdraw from the towns it has occupied in recent months or else a Kenyan-led East African regional force would intervene.
Meanwhile, the UN peacekeeping mission – Monusco – said the violence took place Tuesday in Kishishe village “and included a high number of civilian casualties".
The community is about 70 kilometres from the regional capital, Goma.
#RDC : Au moins 50 personnes massacrées par les terroristes du #M23 à #Kishishie, enrôlement et travaux forcés des jeunes, violence sur les femmes. Point sur la situation humanitaire et les droits de l’homme ds les zones occupées #BriefingSpecial avec @fabricepuela et @modestemu2 pic.twitter.com/l7sUfY2hTj
— Patrick Muyaya (@PatrickMuyaya) December 1, 2022
DRC claims Rwanda is backing M23
Government spokesman Patrick Muyaya denounced the M23 group as "terrorists" on Twitter, adding that the rebels were also responsible for the forced recruitment of children and for committing acts of violence against women.
A local civil society group claims that the death toll in Kishishe has risen after more bodies were discovered in a field near Bwito, adding that other civilians are still being reported missing after the attack.
According to the UN Secretary-General's spokesperson in New York, Stephane Dujarric, Monusco had received reports of fighting in the area between M23 rebels and Mai-Mai militias.
However, the Congolese military blame the deaths in Kishishe on Rwandan defense forces and the M23.
The DRC has long accused Rwanda of backing the rebels, an allegation Kigali has repeatedly denied.
Voici ce qui se passe dans les zones sous contrôle du M23, les militaires travaillent ensemble avec les populations. Le M23 n'a jamais ciblé les populations civiles. ces allégations sont portées par ceux qui ne veulent pas la paix, dans le seul but d'opposer les communautés. pic.twitter.com/FDBNmjU89f
— Lawrence KANYUKA (@LawrenceKanyuka) December 2, 2022
Massacre allegations
Lawrence Kanyuka, M23's political spokesman, has denied the allegations of involvement in the violence in Kishishe, calling them baseless.
Kanyuka said in a statement: "M23 reminds the international and national community that it has never targeted civilian populations."
Leaders at last week's summit in Luanda warned that if M23 did not respect the ceasefire and relinquish control of the towns it held that an East African regional force would make them do so.
A contingent of Kenyan troops has already deployed in the eastern DRC as part of a regional force agreed to in June.
The force will eventually include two battalions from Uganda, two from Burundi and one from South Sudan as well.
