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Saturday 31 August 2013

BBC News - Democratic Republic of Congo: M23 rebel forces 'withdraw'


Democratic Republic of Congo: M23 rebel forces 'withdraw'


Congolese M23 rebels stand on a street in Rutshuru, Democratic Republic of Congo 3 August, 2013.
M23 fighters in eastern Congo, near Rwanda, have been targeted in an offensive spearheaded by the UN

The M23 rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has said it will stop fighting, following days of clashes with UN-backed forces.

M23 official Museveni Sendugo told the BBC its forces had already pulled back 5km (three miles) from the frontline.

Rebel leader Bertrand Bisimwa said the pull-back would allow an independent investigation into how shells fell over the border in Rwanda on Thursday.

The Congolese army denies Rwandan accusations it fired the shells.

DR Congo and the UN accuse Rwanda of backing the M23, a charge it denies.

Their troops have been pounding rebel positions on the Congolese side of the border with Rwanda near the city of Goma since last week.

M23 rebel recruits stand at attention during a training session at the Rumangabo military camp in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on 16 May, 2013.
Since the M23 took up arms in 2012, fighting has forced some 800,000 people to flee their homes
In this 30 November, 2012 file photo, M23 rebels withdraw from the Masisi and Sake areas in eastern Congo.
They briefly occupied Goma, the main city in eastern DR Congo in November, before withdrawing under diplomatic pressure
UN peacekeepers from Tanzania patrol near the border crossing point between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo in Goma, 29 August, 2013.
A 3,000-strong special UN brigade has been sent to the region to disarm the rebels
This photo taken on 29 May, 2013, shows a United Nations peacekeeping mission helicopter flying over a UN base camp in Goma.
UN helicopters have attacked rebels in a joint operation with Congolese government troops

As tension escalated on Thursday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appealed to Rwanda's president for restraint.

Rwanda twice invaded its much larger neighbour during the 1990s, and the border area has been unstable for two decades.

Rwanda's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, Olivier Nduhungirehe, told the BBC's Focus on Africa that "a red line was crossed" by DR Congo on Thursday when he said a Rwandan woman was killed in cross-border shelling.

The M23 rebels, he said, were an "internal problem" within DR Congo, and the Congolese government "should not drag Rwanda" into the dispute.

He denied allegations by the Congolese information minister that 300 Rwandan troops had been fighting alongside the M23 rebels.

Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo on Friday tweeted: "Rwandan troops are not in DRC (yet), when they are, you will know."

A newspaper close to Rwanda's government has published photographs showing a military build-up near the border with DR Congo.

Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende told the BBC's Newsday programme that M23 rebels were firing onto Rwandan territory "to give Rwanda a pretext for coming in openly in this war".

The UN peacekeeping mission in DR Congo, Monusco, recently deployed a new 3,000-strong intervention brigade to tackle the rebels.

'Cannot be tolerated'

Ms Mushikiwabo on Thursday said that 23 "bombs and rockets" had been fired into Rwanda this week.

She accused DR Congo forces of targeting Rwandan civilians, and said: "We have remained restrained for as long as we can but this provocation can no longer be tolerated."

BBC Great Lakes service editor Ally Yusuf Mugenzi says that even when Rwanda invaded Congolese territory, it never made such strong accusations against the Congolese army.

Congolese army spokesman Col Olivier Hamuli told the BBC that his forces would never fire at civilian populations.

"That could only be rebels," he said, adding that M23 fighters, and not soldiers, were in the area from which the shells were fired.

This was backed up by Mr Ban's assistant, Edmond Mulet, who told the UN Security Council on Thursday that UN forces in the DR Congo had witnessed M23 rebels firing artillery into Rwanda but not the Congolese army, diplomats said.

Mr Mulet ended the session by informing members that Mr Ban had telephoned Rwandan President Paul Kagame to urge restraint.

UN peacekeeper in Goma, DR Congo, on 29 August 2013
The UN has boosted its peacekeeping force with a special brigade to disarm rebels

South Africa warning

Meanwhile South Africa, which has troops in the UN force, has warned the rebels not to try to occupy Goma.

"We're trying to send a message to the M23: This time around you're not going to see Goma," Lieutenant General Derrick Mgwebi of South Africa's defence force said, according to the AFP news agency.

At least 800,000 people have fled their homes in DR Congo since the M23 launched its rebellion in April 2012.

They briefly occupied Goma in November 2012 before pulling out under international pressure.

The M23 rebel movement is named after a 23 March 2009 peace deal that ended four years of rebellion in eastern DR Congo.

The rebels complained the Congolese government had failed to honour the agreement, which included integrating them into the army.

The M23 are mainly ethnic Tutsis, like most of Rwanda's leaders.

Eastern DR Congo has been wracked by conflict since 1994, when Hutu militias fled across the border from Rwanda after carrying out a genocide against Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

BBC News - Democratic Republic of Congo: M23 rebel forces 'withdraw'


Democratic Republic of Congo: M23 rebel forces 'withdraw'


Congolese M23 rebels stand on a street in Rutshuru, Democratic Republic of Congo 3 August, 2013.
M23 fighters in eastern Congo, near Rwanda, have been targeted in an offensive spearheaded by the UN

The M23 rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has said it will stop fighting, following days of clashes with UN-backed forces.

M23 official Museveni Sendugo told the BBC its forces had already pulled back 5km (three miles) from the frontline.

Rebel leader Bertrand Bisimwa said the pull-back would allow an independent investigation into how shells fell over the border in Rwanda on Thursday.

The Congolese army denies Rwandan accusations it fired the shells.

DR Congo and the UN accuse Rwanda of backing the M23, a charge it denies.

Their troops have been pounding rebel positions on the Congolese side of the border with Rwanda near the city of Goma since last week.

M23 rebel recruits stand at attention during a training session at the Rumangabo military camp in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on 16 May, 2013.
Since the M23 took up arms in 2012, fighting has forced some 800,000 people to flee their homes
In this 30 November, 2012 file photo, M23 rebels withdraw from the Masisi and Sake areas in eastern Congo.
They briefly occupied Goma, the main city in eastern DR Congo in November, before withdrawing under diplomatic pressure
UN peacekeepers from Tanzania patrol near the border crossing point between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo in Goma, 29 August, 2013.
A 3,000-strong special UN brigade has been sent to the region to disarm the rebels
This photo taken on 29 May, 2013, shows a United Nations peacekeeping mission helicopter flying over a UN base camp in Goma.
UN helicopters have attacked rebels in a joint operation with Congolese government troops

As tension escalated on Thursday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appealed to Rwanda's president for restraint.

Rwanda twice invaded its much larger neighbour during the 1990s, and the border area has been unstable for two decades.

Rwanda's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, Olivier Nduhungirehe, told the BBC's Focus on Africa that "a red line was crossed" by DR Congo on Thursday when he said a Rwandan woman was killed in cross-border shelling.

The M23 rebels, he said, were an "internal problem" within DR Congo, and the Congolese government "should not drag Rwanda" into the dispute.

He denied allegations by the Congolese information minister that 300 Rwandan troops had been fighting alongside the M23 rebels.

Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo on Friday tweeted: "Rwandan troops are not in DRC (yet), when they are, you will know."

A newspaper close to Rwanda's government has published photographs showing a military build-up near the border with DR Congo.

Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende told the BBC's Newsday programme that M23 rebels were firing onto Rwandan territory "to give Rwanda a pretext for coming in openly in this war".

The UN peacekeeping mission in DR Congo, Monusco, recently deployed a new 3,000-strong intervention brigade to tackle the rebels.

'Cannot be tolerated'

Ms Mushikiwabo on Thursday said that 23 "bombs and rockets" had been fired into Rwanda this week.

She accused DR Congo forces of targeting Rwandan civilians, and said: "We have remained restrained for as long as we can but this provocation can no longer be tolerated."

BBC Great Lakes service editor Ally Yusuf Mugenzi says that even when Rwanda invaded Congolese territory, it never made such strong accusations against the Congolese army.

Congolese army spokesman Col Olivier Hamuli told the BBC that his forces would never fire at civilian populations.

"That could only be rebels," he said, adding that M23 fighters, and not soldiers, were in the area from which the shells were fired.

This was backed up by Mr Ban's assistant, Edmond Mulet, who told the UN Security Council on Thursday that UN forces in the DR Congo had witnessed M23 rebels firing artillery into Rwanda but not the Congolese army, diplomats said.

Mr Mulet ended the session by informing members that Mr Ban had telephoned Rwandan President Paul Kagame to urge restraint.

UN peacekeeper in Goma, DR Congo, on 29 August 2013
The UN has boosted its peacekeeping force with a special brigade to disarm rebels

South Africa warning

Meanwhile South Africa, which has troops in the UN force, has warned the rebels not to try to occupy Goma.

"We're trying to send a message to the M23: This time around you're not going to see Goma," Lieutenant General Derrick Mgwebi of South Africa's defence force said, according to the AFP news agency.

At least 800,000 people have fled their homes in DR Congo since the M23 launched its rebellion in April 2012.

They briefly occupied Goma in November 2012 before pulling out under international pressure.

The M23 rebel movement is named after a 23 March 2009 peace deal that ended four years of rebellion in eastern DR Congo.

The rebels complained the Congolese government had failed to honour the agreement, which included integrating them into the army.

The M23 are mainly ethnic Tutsis, like most of Rwanda's leaders.

Eastern DR Congo has been wracked by conflict since 1994, when Hutu militias fled across the border from Rwanda after carrying out a genocide against Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

SA warns DRC rebels 'hands off Goma'


SA warns DRC rebels 'hands off Goma'

2013-08-30 15:25


Pretoria - South Africa has warned rebels fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo not to try and retake the battleground city of Goma on Friday after a week of escalating violence.

South Africa is part of the UN peace enforcement military task force to the country's troubled eastern region bordering on Rwanda.

Goma, a mining hub and town of a million people, was briefly held by M23 rebels earlier in the year and still remains under threat.

"We're trying to send a message to the M23, this time around you're not going to see Goma," said Lieutenant General Derrick Mgwebi, South Africa National Defence Force Chief of Joint Operations.

"Don't venture in ideas of taking over again."

South African soldiers are part of a UN intervention brigade, a 3 000-strong contingent with an unprecedented offensive mandate to fight entrenched armed movements, marking a strategic change of tack from traditionally peaceful UN missions.

"This is the first time that a UN peacekeeping force has had as its sole mandate the seeking out and neutralising of rebel groups," said Darren Olivier, a senior correspondent at the African Defence Review, an organisation focused on African security.

"While UN peacekeeping missions in the past have on occasion directly engaged rebel forces, they have done so as part of mandates to defend themselves or population centres only," he said.

Indiscriminate shelling

Fresh fighting flared in the resource-rich eastern DR Congo Thursday, with government forces backed by UN troops shelling rebels near Goma and tensions spilling over into neighbouring Rwanda.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday accused M23 rebels of "indiscriminate shelling" inside the DRC and into Rwanda, where authorities said a woman was killed in artillery fire on Thursday.

"He also calls on all member states with influence in the region to assist in easing tensions," in a statement released by his spokesman Martin Nesirky.

South African snipers have killed at least six M23 rebels in recent days as Ukranian Mi-24P helicopters pounded M23 positions from the air.

Olivier said the United Nations has a significant military edge over their M23 adversaries.

"The biggest advantages they have at the moment are its artillery batteries, mortar teams, special forces commandos and the two Mi-24P attack helicopters providing air support," he said.

This allows the UN forces to "provide effective assistance without needing to engage its infantry battalions directly".

The M23 rebel movement is a predominantly ethnic Tutsi force that deserted from the army last year and has been battling the regular army.

This week the UN force has seen intensified fighting as it attempts to keep rebels from Goma. The fighting took place in Kibati, an area in the northern outskirts of Goma.

Escalating violence 

"Bombs were landing in the airport and in the town," they were "falling left and right" of the South African Munigi base, according to notes distributed by the South African military.

M23 mortars killed a Tanzanian United Nations peacekeeper and injured ten others on Wednesday, according Mgwebi.

"Three of our soldiers have been injured in the conflict since the weekend, largely from shrapnel wounds. None have been seriously wounded," said President Jacob Zuma on Thursday.

South Africa is contributing 1 345 troops to the UN mission, representing approximately half of the intervention brigade.

The escalating violence is a sensitive issue in South Africa, after 15 of the country's soldiers were killed in the Central African Republic in March, amid criticism that the troops were unprepared and did not have adequate equipment.

But Mgwebi said the troops deployed to date have received training and are protected. "They've got something on the ground and fire support is being provided as we speak," he said.

AFP

SA warns DRC rebels 'hands off Goma'


SA warns DRC rebels 'hands off Goma'

2013-08-30 15:25


Pretoria - South Africa has warned rebels fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo not to try and retake the battleground city of Goma on Friday after a week of escalating violence.

South Africa is part of the UN peace enforcement military task force to the country's troubled eastern region bordering on Rwanda.

Goma, a mining hub and town of a million people, was briefly held by M23 rebels earlier in the year and still remains under threat.

"We're trying to send a message to the M23, this time around you're not going to see Goma," said Lieutenant General Derrick Mgwebi, South Africa National Defence Force Chief of Joint Operations.

"Don't venture in ideas of taking over again."

South African soldiers are part of a UN intervention brigade, a 3 000-strong contingent with an unprecedented offensive mandate to fight entrenched armed movements, marking a strategic change of tack from traditionally peaceful UN missions.

"This is the first time that a UN peacekeeping force has had as its sole mandate the seeking out and neutralising of rebel groups," said Darren Olivier, a senior correspondent at the African Defence Review, an organisation focused on African security.

"While UN peacekeeping missions in the past have on occasion directly engaged rebel forces, they have done so as part of mandates to defend themselves or population centres only," he said.

Indiscriminate shelling

Fresh fighting flared in the resource-rich eastern DR Congo Thursday, with government forces backed by UN troops shelling rebels near Goma and tensions spilling over into neighbouring Rwanda.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday accused M23 rebels of "indiscriminate shelling" inside the DRC and into Rwanda, where authorities said a woman was killed in artillery fire on Thursday.

"He also calls on all member states with influence in the region to assist in easing tensions," in a statement released by his spokesman Martin Nesirky.

South African snipers have killed at least six M23 rebels in recent days as Ukranian Mi-24P helicopters pounded M23 positions from the air.

Olivier said the United Nations has a significant military edge over their M23 adversaries.

"The biggest advantages they have at the moment are its artillery batteries, mortar teams, special forces commandos and the two Mi-24P attack helicopters providing air support," he said.

This allows the UN forces to "provide effective assistance without needing to engage its infantry battalions directly".

The M23 rebel movement is a predominantly ethnic Tutsi force that deserted from the army last year and has been battling the regular army.

This week the UN force has seen intensified fighting as it attempts to keep rebels from Goma. The fighting took place in Kibati, an area in the northern outskirts of Goma.

Escalating violence 

"Bombs were landing in the airport and in the town," they were "falling left and right" of the South African Munigi base, according to notes distributed by the South African military.

M23 mortars killed a Tanzanian United Nations peacekeeper and injured ten others on Wednesday, according Mgwebi.

"Three of our soldiers have been injured in the conflict since the weekend, largely from shrapnel wounds. None have been seriously wounded," said President Jacob Zuma on Thursday.

South Africa is contributing 1 345 troops to the UN mission, representing approximately half of the intervention brigade.

The escalating violence is a sensitive issue in South Africa, after 15 of the country's soldiers were killed in the Central African Republic in March, amid criticism that the troops were unprepared and did not have adequate equipment.

But Mgwebi said the troops deployed to date have received training and are protected. "They've got something on the ground and fire support is being provided as we speak," he said.

AFP

Thursday 29 August 2013

Why the world is ignoring Congo war: The UK Prime Minister David Cameroon has refused to condemn the violence in DRC

So far, the  UK Prime Minister David Cameroon has refused to condemn the  violence  in  Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) because he supports the dictator and war criminal Paul Kagame who is fighting in DRC, displacing and killing  civilians using British tax payer's  money. 


Why the world is ignoring Congo war

http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/27/opinion/congo-war-ignored-vava-tampa

By Vava Tampa, Special to CNN
updated 10:29 AM EST, Tue November 27, 2012
The M23 rebel group is fighting the Democratic Republic of Congo military for control of the country, and the violence is driving tens of thousands of Congolese out of their homes. Here on November 22, thousands fled the town of Sake and headed east to the camps for displaced in the village of Mugunga.The M23 rebel group is fighting the Democratic Republic of Congo military for control of the country, and the violence is driving tens of thousands of Congolese out of their homes. Here on November 22, thousands fled the town of Sake and headed east to the camps for displaced in the village of Mugunga.
HIDE CAPTION

Editor's note: Vava Tampa, a native of Congo, is the founder of Save the Congo, a London-based campaign to tackle "the impunity, insecurity, institutional failure and the international trade of minerals funding the wars in Democratic Republic of the Congo." Follow Vava Tampa on twitter: @VavaTampa
(CNN) -- If humanitarian crises were listed by some sort of moral -- or editorial -- standards on the stock exchange, to help indicate which ones urgently require international news coverage and political action, shares of the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) would have commanded international news headlines and extensive press coverage over the past 12 years.
The U.N. has labeled the DRC, Africa's second largest country, as the "rape capital of the world" because of the pace and scope of the use of rape as a weapon of war by proxy militia gangs fighting for control of Congo's easily appropriable and highly valuable natural resources, destined for sale in Europe, Asia, Canada and the United States.
The wars in that country have claimed nearly the same number of lives as having a 9/11 every single day for 360 days, the genocide that struck Rwanda in 1994, the ethnic cleansing that overwhelmed Bosnia in the mid-1990s, the genocide that took place in Darfur, the number of people killed in the great tsunami that struck Asia in 2004, and the number of people who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki -- all combined and then doubled.
Vava Tampa, founder of Save the Congo.
Vava Tampa, founder of Save the Congo.
Yet we rarely hear anything about it. Indeed, one only need contrast media coverage of the latest Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza strip and Hamas rocket attacks into southern Israel, which have made front pages around the world, to the stunningly limited media coverage afforded to graphic accounts of atrocities committed that same week by M23, the newest militia gang terrorizing the local population.
The same trend has been observed in the extensive coverage of the on-going, fast-moving and difficult-to-report civil war in Syria, which has claimed nearly 40,000 lives.
M23's murderous campaigns to besiege Congo's eastern mineral-rich provinces of North and South Kivu have left over 200,000 people in terrible conditions, killed countless and ushered in a dire humanitarian transgression.
The Rwandan government has been accused by the United Nations of backing M23 by providing it with arms, support and soldiers, but Rwanda's President, Paul Kagame, has denied the allegation.
Rebels advancing in Congo
Refugees flee from rebels in Congo
Life in Goma amid crisis
Congolese rebels take over Goma
The question here is not whether the human suffering in Congo deserves more media coverage because it is greater than that in Syria or Gaza, but rather, why has the crisis in Syria or Gaza qualified for extensive media coverage, but not the killing and raping industries in Congo?
I doubt that this is because of a shortage of sobering imagery of Congo's killing fields or a lack of first-hand testimonies from survivors, or a lack of human rights and humanitarian reports and assessments of the situation.
Is it due to the geographical or cultural distance between London or Washington and Congo? Or are Western media just reluctant, if not uninterested, to cover it because no Western interests or ally is endangered by it?
Would the coverage the situation in Congo receives be the same if it was happening in Europe or if Congo spoke English rather than French?
What if Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe or his disciples were implicated in funding murderous militia gangs in Congo? Or if the killing was between black Africans and Arabs? Or if minerals funding Congo's killing and raping industries benefited the East more than the West?
But as an activist, I believe that the editors of news organizations such as CNN, Al Jazeera and the BBC must flood the airwaves with vivid images and news stories on the human sufferings in Congo. Newspapers such the Guardian, in the UK, and the New York Times must drumbeat front-page news stories on the wars and human tragedy engulfing that country.
Unless they tip that balance a little and force policy makers in Washington and internationally to pay more attention and act, the killing, raping and looting that have thus far claimed over 5.4 million Congolese lives, and continue to leave 1,100 women raped every single day, could continue to unfold undetected by the camera lenses of Western media and excluded from Western political agenda


The Hard Truths We Must Swallow: The Rwandan Government Wreaking Havoc in Congo

The Rwandan Genocide was 19 years ago. Though the genocide ended in 1994, its consequences are still deeply felt today. For myself and other survivors, those memories are ever-present. We have never forgotten the horrors we lived through, as unimaginable violence overtook our country. We grapple with mixed emotions, trying to process, and come to terms with today's reality. Our struggle has evolved from physical survival, to that of emotional turmoil caused by our trauma. Some days, we are grateful to be alive, to breathe, and to feel. Other days are fraught with anger, guilt, and sadness. We wrestle with endless, unanswerable questions. Many days we feel unworthy to be alive. We cannot comprehend why we are still alive and why many others perished. Why me, we wonder? Why not my family or friends? We wonder why we had to witness their demise and are angry because we felt so helpless. Try as we might, we can never reverse the darkest moments of our lives. We cannot undo the damage, no matter how hard we wish we could. The genocide was real, it happened, and we live with its consequences to this very day. I was a powerless child, but still, what if there was something I could have done? And what if it happened again?
It is precisely this fear of another genocide carried out by the same perpetrators that carried out the genocide of 1994 that motivated the current Rwandan government's first invasion of Congo in 1996. It is this fear that has sustained the Rwandan government's justification for repeated intervention in the Congo over the last 16 years. And it is precisely why the world continues to live with the consequences of the Rwandan Genocide. Even though as survivors of the Rwandan Genocide we understood the security the Rwandan government sought when they first invaded Congo, we did not sanction the human catastrophe they triggered. We did not sanction the torture, rape, and possible genocide of women, children, and the elderly that were targeted in Congo when the Rwandan Government sent troops inside of Congo for "our protection." And we certainly did not sanction the government of Rwanda's "Six-Day War" against Uganda over a diamond mine inside Congo, leaving significant numbers of Congolese people dead, injured, and displaced. And even now, we do not sanction the violation of the United Nations arms embargo, undermining of peace deals and processes, and commanding proxy rebel groups who kill, torture, rape, and displace people, while illegally capturing cities in Congo. And most of all, we do not sanction any attempt to annex any part of Congo in our name.
Since the first invasion, more than 5 million people have died in Congo, making it the deadliest conflict since the Second World War. And many of those deaths lie at the hands of the Rwandan government. These are hard truths we must swallow. Not only must we come to terms with crimes that were committed against us, we must now deal with crimes committed in our names. These crimes are not simply committed in our names, survivors of the Rwandan Genocide, but in the name of the entire global community that stands still, providing tacit approval. They are also committed for the same international community that justifies, excuses, and protects, the Rwandan government, as it continues to wreak havoc in the Congo. Though we could not stop or stand up against the violent acts that were committed against us during the Rwandan genocide, we can and we must stop and stand up against crimes committed against others, crimes committed in our name in Congo.

After 16 years of invasion and intervention through proxy groups, it is still difficult for people in the international community to accept that the Rwandan government is guilty of anything but justified intervention in Congo. But members of the international community must look past the glowing economic reviews, look past the constant denials, and well-oiled public relations machine, and deal with the hard truths. The Rwandan government is committing unspeakable crimes against humanity in the Congo under false pretenses, and we must stop it. U.S. President Barack Obama understood this when as Senator, he authored and passed into law the Democratic Republic of Congo Relief, Security and Democracy Promotion Act, PL 109-456 in 2006 that called for accountability for Congo's neighbors who destabilize the country. And he understood it last summer when he cut $200,000 in military aid to Rwanda. And he understood it last December when he personally made a call to Rwandan President Paul Kagame and asked him to cease support of the M23 rebel group, currently wreaking havoc in Congo.
Despite all these steps from the Obama administration to address the conflict, the Rwandan government continues to relentlessly support, arm, and command rebel groups such as the M23, while these groups continues to commit war crimes and human rights violations in Congo. It is precisely because we refuse to swallow these hard truths that the Rwandan government continues to commit such atrocities unchallenged and with impunity. If we can muster the courage to face these truths, we can impose accountability measures consistent with the degree of suffering and instability wrought by the Rwandan government against the Congolese people. We can and we should sanction and impose travel bans and freeze assets of identified Rwandan military personnel responsible for committing atrocities in Congo. And we should cut or withhold military aid to a dangerous regime that wages and sponsors war and conflict in the territory of another nation.

Survivors of the Rwandan Genocide mourned and commemorate the 19th anniversary of the genocide this past spring. As we commemorate our loved ones, we continue to grapple with traumas of our past, and issues of our present. Our responsibility lies in what we do with our future, and how we stand up to evil perpetrated against our neighbors. We, along with the rest of the world, must no longer refuse to swallow difficult and painful truths, and dedicate consistent focus and action towards resolving the deadliest conflict since the Second World War in Congo.
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M23 rebels attack Congo troops near Goma

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/27/m23-rebels-congo-troops-goma

Both sides reportedly suffer heavy casualties and three UN peacekeepers are wounded near Rwandan border
  • theguardian.com,
Goma protest
Goma residents march in protest against violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Photograph: Alain Wandimoyi/AP
Congolese troops have come under fire from rebels in the country's volatile east as fighting resumed just outside Goma, a city of nearly 1 million people near the volatile Congolese-Rwandan border, army officials say.
Heavy weapons fire rang out at around 4.30pm near the frontline just nine miles (11km) outside the city.
Hostilities resumed last week after weeks of relative calm, and on Thursday a new United Nations intervention brigade with a stronger mandate than past missions shelled rebel positions for the first time.
Both sides suffered heavy casualties over the weekend, with more than 50 rebels killed and 23 government soldiers dead, according to a doctor near the frontline and an army chaplain. Three UN peacekeepers were wounded: two South Africans and a Tanzanian, the UN-backed Radio Okapi reported.
Dr Isaac Warwanamiza, treating casualties of the conflict, said he had seen 82 bodies since early Sunday, 23 of whom he claimed were government soldiers, the highest death toll reported since hostilities broke out last week. "I'm overwhelmed by what I've seen: bodies blown apart, arms and feet here and there," he said, speaking to the Associated Press by phone from a hospital north of Goma.
Eight of the dead had no uniforms, 23 were government troops and the rest were March 23 Movement (M23) rebels, the doctor added.
There are 720 wounded Congolese troops at the military hospital, according to the army chaplain Lea Masika.
The head of the United Nations mission in Congo, Martin Kobler, visited two hospitals on Sunday and paid his respects to wounded government and UN soldiers, hailing them as "heroes fighting to restore peace", Radio Okapi reported.
The Congolese forces have advanced less than a mile since Wednesday and have yet to achieve their immediate objective – cutting off the M23 from a border crossing where the rebel group is believed to get supplies from neighbouring Rwanda, say observers.
The Congolese are fighting with the help of a new UN intervention brigade, which was created after the M23 rebels invaded and briefly held Goma in November.
The M23 has been pounding Goma from its positions just north of the strategic city, killing civilians in Goma's residential neighbourhoods. By Saturday, scores of angry residents took to the streets in protest, claiming the UN had not done enough to protect them. A UN car was set on fire, and in the melée two protesters were killed.
Some Goma residents claim the UN opened fire on the mob, but the president of Uruguay, José Mujica, said in a statement over the weekend that Uruguayan peacekeepers had only fired rubber bullets to control the crowd. Mujica said it was Congolese police who had used live ammunition.
On Monday, the Congolese government called for an investigation into the deaths of the civilians. The minister of the interior, Richard Muyej, told the Associated Press: "We are absolutely in agreement that a joint commission needs to be created."
Medical services were struggling to cope with the scale of the casualties among government troops and the M23 fighters. Subsequent peace talks in neighbouring Uganda have repeatedly stalled.
This weekend's clashes are the first time the Congolese army has been backed by the new UN intervention force, which was created in March.
The M23 is made up of hundreds of Congolese soldiers, mostly from the Tutsi ethnic group, who deserted the national army last year after accusing the government of failing to honour the terms of a deal signed in March 2009. Many of the movement's commanders are veterans of previous rebellions backed by Rwanda, which vigorously denies allegations that it has been supporting and reinforcing the M23.
In Washington, the state department condemned the actions of the M23, calling on the rebel group to immediately cease hostilities, disarm and disband. The US also suggested Rwanda was assisting the rebels.
"We urgently call on [Congolese] and Rwandan governments to exercise restraint to prevent military escalation of the conflict or any action that puts civilians at risk," the statement said. "We reiterate our call for Rwanda to cease any and all support to the M23."

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