Rwanda has welcomed another 337 Rwandans who were held hostage by the FDLR terrorist group operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The returnees included 234 children, 22 men and 81 women. They crossed the main border crossing of La Corniche, which connects Rwanda with the DRC.
They returned on December 11, 2025, to find vehicles waiting to take them to the Kijote camp in Nyabihu District, where they were temporarily transferred.
These Rwandans were living in the Goma temporary camp, after leaving different parts of the eastern DRC, where they had been held hostage by the FDLR.
The Deputy Mayor of Rubavu District for Social Affairs, Ishimwe Pacifique, reminded the returnees that they are the strength the country had lost.
He said, “Those who returned, we understand that we treat you as people that the country had lost, but we are happy that we are going to work with you in rebuilding it. You are going to the same place, you are being helped to get basic necessities, and when you return, you will be given money to help you enter normal life.”
What they will receive includes basic money to help them start their lives, where a returnee over the age of 18 will receive $188, and those under that age will receive $113, and each will benefit from basic food worth 45,000 Rwf.
