What is happening in east Congo? And who are the M23 rebels?
What is happening in east Congo? And who are the M23 rebels?
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A long-running conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. Congo has severed diplomatic ties with Rwanda as fighting between Rwanda-backed rebels, the M23 group, and Government forces rage around the key eastern city of Goma,. In recent weeks, the rebel group has made significant territorial gains along the border with Rwanda, encircling Goma, the provincial capital of around two million people and a regional hub for security and humanitarian efforts.
![[Humanitarian staff flee from Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, following fighting between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/09/2025-01-27T085706Z_1154656462_RC28ICAHJQMU_RTRMADP_3_CONGO-SECURITY.jpg)
Congo, the US and UN experts accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which is mainly made up of ethnic Tutsis who broke away from the Congolese army more than a decade ago. It's one of about 100 armed groups that have been vying for a foothold in the mineral-rich region, where a long-running conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. The region already suffered two devastating wars between 1996 and 2003.
Here is some background on the conflict:. M23, which refers to the March 23, 2009, accord that ended a previous Tutsi-led revolt in eastern Congo, is the latest group of ethnic Tutsi-led insurgents to take up arms against Congolese forces. It launched the current rebellion in 2022.
The group has accused the Government of Congo of not living up to the peace deal and fully integrating Congolese Tutsis into the army and administration. It also vows to defend Tutsi interests, particularly against ethnic Hutu militias such as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), founded by Hutus who fled Rwanda after participating in the 1994 genocide of close to 1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus.
