Kinshasa casts doubts on M23 pullout from Uvira

The Democratic Republic of Congo has cast doubt on claims that AFC/M23 rebels have withdrawn from the city of Uvira in South Kivu, deepening mistrust in a conflict that regional mediators are struggling to resolve.

The rebels, operating under the political banner Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), announced last week that they had pulled out of Uvira, which they recently captured. They said the move was unilateral and aimed at building trust following a peace agreement signed by Rwanda and the DRC in Washington two weeks earlier.

However, Kinshasa says there is no evidence of a withdrawal and raised the issue at a regional summit in Kampala on Sunday.

The ad hoc summit of Heads of State and Government of the Regional Mechanism for the Follow-up of the Framework Agreement under the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), convened at the initiative of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, focused on the security situation in eastern DRC.

Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi dismissed the M23 announcement as a “tactical move.”

“The alleged withdrawal of the AFC/M23 from Uvira does not correspond to the facts or to observations gathered on the ground,” Tshisekedi told leaders via video link from Kinshasa.

“Our information indicates that armed elements remain present in the city and its immediate surroundings, that strategic positions remain occupied and that the population continues to be exposed to abuses.”

The summit was attended by ICGLR member states as well as representatives of the African Union, European Union, United States, United Nations and other invited countries.

The member states are Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, DRC, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

The Congolese army said the rebels “are maintaining barriers and checkpoints erected by these armed groups, which are still operational, hindering the free movement of people and goods in Uvira and its surroundings.”

For the Congolese authorities, “an announced withdrawal that is neither effective, verified, nor followed by the restoration of the authority of the regular forces cannot be considered a real withdrawal.”

They added that “the announcement of the M23’s withdrawal is merely a media stunt intended to mislead public opinion and manipulate the American mediator.”

Ongoing clashes

Fighting has continued in some areas despite ceasefire commitments. According to Maj-Gen Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for the Congolese army (FARDC), clashes are ongoing.

“Fighting took place between the FARDC and the AFC/M23 and the Rwandan army in Kasekezi, a town located one kilometre south of Makobola, approximately 35 kilometres south of Uvira, on the road to Baraka,” he said.

Independent verification has been difficult, with a planned monitoring and verification mechanism yet to become fully operational. As a result, ceasefire declarations are often made even as hostilities persist on the ground.

Two weeks after the Washington agreement, doubts over the withdrawal underscore the fragility of the peace process. While leaders in Kampala reiterated their commitment to lasting peace, accusations were exchanged between representatives of Rwanda and the DRC.

Kinshasa continues to accuse Kigali of supporting the rebels. Rwanda’s Minister of Interior, Vincent Biruta, rejected the claims and instead pointed to the presence of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) in eastern Congo as the root cause of the conflict.

FDLR was founded by Hutus who fled Rwanda after participating in the 1994 genocide.

“The FDLR issue remains the fundamental and unresolved problem of insecurity in eastern DRC and the Great Lakes region,” Biruta said.

He called for a “serious, sustainable and coordinated” approach to addressing the group, arguing that any security solution that ignores it would remain “incomplete and fragile.”

Kinshasa accuses Kigali of backing M23 rebels, claims Rwanda denies.

Under the Washington agreement, Rwanda and the DRC committed to cease all support for armed groups operating in the region.

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