Washington says it is unconvinced that Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have fully pulled out of a key town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, despite claims of withdrawal, a senior US official told Reuters, as residents reported continued clashes nearby on Tuesday.M23 fighters captured the town of Uvira, close to the Burundi border, on December 10.
The takeover came just days after Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame met US President Donald Trump in Washington, where they reaffirmed a US-brokered peace agreement.
The seizure marked the group’s most significant advance in months, raising alarm over the risk of the conflict spreading in a region where fighting since January has killed thousands and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes.
After US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Rwanda of breaching the peace deal through its actions in Congo’s mineral-rich east, M23 announced last week that it would withdraw to allow peace talks to proceed.
However, although most M23 fighters appear to have left Uvira itself, the senior US official said the United States remains “not satisfied” that the withdrawal is complete.
“There has been some movement, but we don’t believe it amounts to a full liberation of the town,” the official said. “We think M23 forces are still positioned around the city.”Gunfire in UviraTwo residents told Reuters on Tuesday that some M23 fighters are still present in Uvira, now dressed in police uniforms rather than military gear.
One resident reported hearing sporadic gunfire on Tuesday morning from hills overlooking the Kalundu neighbourhood.
Both M23 sources and Congolese army officials have blamed each other for the recent violence.
Rwanda has denied supporting M23, instead accusing Congolese and Burundian forces of fueling the renewed fighting. However, a July report by a United Nations panel of experts concluded that Rwanda exercised command and control over the rebel group.
Although M23 is not directly involved in the Washington-led negotiations, it is holding separate talks with the Congolese government in Qatar.
Refugee crisisThe latest surge in violence has pushed more than 84,000 refugees into Burundi this month, stretching the country’s capacity, according to the UN refugee agency.
In South Kivu province alone, around 500,000 people have been displaced since early December. The World Food Programme says it is expanding assistance to 210,000 of the most vulnerable people affected by the fighting.
M23’s rapid advances this year in North and South Kivu have already cost Congo an estimated 0.4 percent of its GDP, while emergency security spending is approaching $3 billion, IMF mission chief Calixte Ahokpossi told Reuters.
“If insecurity continues in the medium term and spending cuts persist, especially in investment and social programmes, it will affect growth and the country’s future,” he warned.
