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As Rwanda votes, tensions with neighbouring DR Congo deepen over M23

GOMA, Congo — Congolese security forces and rebel groups have agreed on a 72-hour cease-fire to de-escalate tensions in the country’s hard-hit east near the border with Rwanda, the White House announced just days before Congo’s presidential election. The agreement was backed by both Congo and Rwanda, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council, Adrienne Watson, said in …

Tensions between Congo and Rwanda heighten the risk of military confrontation, UN envoy says

UNITED NATIONS — Tensions between Congo and Rwanda have escalated, heightening the risk of a military confrontation that could draw in Burundi, the top U.N. official in Congo warned the Security Council on Monday. She stressed that insecurity “has compounded the ongoing humanitarian crisis.” According to the U.N. humanitarian office, over 6.5 million people are displaced in Congo, 5.5 million …

US asks Congo and Rwanda to de-escalate tensions as fighting near their border displaces millions

NAIROBI, Kenya — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has urged Rwanda and Congo to de-escalate tensions and withdraw troops from their border following increased fighting that has displaced nearly 7 million people. Blinken spoke separately by phone with Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame about the “volatile situation and worsening humanitarian crisis along the border,” the …

NAIROBI, Kenya — Rwanda has fired on a Congolese military aircraft it alleges violated its airspace in a new escalation of tensions between the neighbors that has set off alarm across central Africa. A Rwandan government statement said “defensive measures” were taken against a Sukhoi-25 from Congo on Tuesday evening, and it urged Congo to “stop this aggression.” Rwanda’s state …

DR Congo and Rwanda agree to reduce tensions over M23 rebels

DRC says it has agreed ‘de-escalation process’ with Rwanda following weeks of rising tensions over rebel fighting. Rwanda and Democratic Republic of the Congo have agreed to a “de-escalation process” following one-day talks between their presidents, mediated by Angola, amid rising tensions over the activities of the M23 rebel group, the Congolese presidency said. It also called for a return …

M23 rebels capture a key border town in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, marking a dramatic escalation in tensions between the Central African neighbours. The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s military has accused Rwanda of “no less than an invasion” after M23 rebels captured a key border town, marking a dramatic escalation in tensions between the two Central African …

Relations have been strained since the mass arrival of Rwandan Hutus in eastern DRC after the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Hundreds have staged an anti-Rwanda protest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo capital Kinshasa, over Kigali’s alleged support to the M23, a notorious rebel group, as tensions between the two neighbours grow. The Rwanda Defence Force later said two soldiers …