Democratic Republic of the Congo – Reuters
The Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo have accused Rwanda of sending 500 secret special forces into its territory, a recent allegation in the escalating conflict between the two neighbors. A Rwandan military spokesman said it was a fabricated story. A government spokesman said Rwanda had not responded to the allegations.
In a statement, the DRC’s army of 500 Rwandan Special Forces, dressed in green and black uniforms, was sent to Sancho District in Rwanda’s northern province of Kiev, different from their regular uniforms. He asked residents to be vigilant and to report those who wear these pants.
Rwanda accuses the Democratic Republic of the Congo of supporting the M23 rebel movement, which has launched its strongest offensive in the border areas of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo since it seized large tracts of land in 2012 and 2013. Rwanda denies this and accuses the DR Congolese army of firing on its territory and fighting alongside the Democratic Liberation Army (FDLR), a Hutu militant group that took part in the 1994 genocide and fled Rwanda.
The M23 rebels, with the support of Rwanda, have launched a UN offensive in the Rutsuru area, north of Kivu. The DRC also reported that it had attacked a peacekeeping force and wounded three Tanzanian peacekeepers. The work of the United Nations in the Democratic Republic of Congo did not respond to a request for comment.
In the aftermath of the 1996 invasions of Rwanda and Uganda, recent fighting in eastern DR Congo forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes under the guise of threats from local militants. The M23 movement is the latest in a series of ethnic Tutsi-led uprisings against Congolese forces.