African state sends soldiers to assist troubled neighbor
Kenya has sent a contingent of soldiers to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo), amid renewed clashes between the Central African nation’s army and rebels in the volatile eastern region.
The troops are the initial group of the fourth contingent of the Kenya Quick Reaction Force (KENQRF 4) for the DR Congo, the Kenyan Defense Forces (KDF) announced on Sunday. They will join the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), tasked with combating armed groups causing instability in the country, the army added.
“Our men and women are prepared for the task ahead. They have undergone rigorous training and are equipped with the necessary skills to execute this mission effectively,” KENQRF 4 commander Lieutenant Colonel Simon Seda said during their sendoff ceremony on Saturday.
“We are committed to contributing to the restoration of peace and stability in the DRC,” he added.
Conflict has been raging in the eastern DR Congo since 2022, driven by fighters from the M23 rebel movement, allegedly with support from Rwandan government forces. Rwanda has denied the allegations.
Late in June, the M23 reportedly seized the town of Kirumba, the economic hub of Congo’s Lubero territory, as well as the neighboring town of Kanyabayonga.
Last month, the government of neighboring Angola announced that it had mediated ceasefire talks between the DR Congo authorities, Rwanda, and the rebels, which resulted in a deal that was set to take effect at midnight on August 4.
On Sunday, the DRC army and the M23 rebels issued separate statements, reporting renewed hostilities in the North Kivu province. Both parties accused each other of violating the Angola ceasefire agreement.
The militant group accused state forces of attacking the densely populated areas of Kirumba and its surroundings early Sunday morning, claiming that its fighters were “professionally defending the targeted civilian population.”
The Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) also reported clashes with the M23 in the village of Kikuvo, around a dozen kilometers away from Kirumba.
Fighting in the restive North Kivu province has displaced more than 1.7 million people, bringing the total number of displaced people in the country to 7.2 million, according to UN estimates.
MONUSCO, the UN peacekeeping mission that has been operating in the troubled east since 1999, began withdrawing around 11,000 troops after Kinshasa demanded their departure last year due to their alleged failure to quell the insurgency. However, in July, Congolese Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner told Reuters that the complete pullout of the peacekeepers was unlikely due to “the aggression by Rwanda.”
Apart from Kenya, several African countries, including South Africa, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, and Malawi, have deployed troops to the DR Congo to assist the army in combating the instability.
