Submit this form
Home News Videos Music Photos Facebook Twitter Friends Newsletter Podcasts Mobile RSS
Rwanda 'recruiting for M23 rebels'

BBC News - July 31, 2013
More than 800,000 civilians have been displaced because of the M23 rebellion
More than 800,000 civilians have been displaced because of the M23 rebellion | Enlarge
Four Rwandans have told the BBC the army forcibly recruited them to fight for the M23 rebel group in neighbouring eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The four said they were seeking asylum in Uganda after fleeing the fighting.

The Rwandan army dismissed their claim, saying they must have made up their stories to get asylum.

Last week, the US called on Rwanda to stop backing the M23. UN experts and DR Congo officials say Rwanda has been sending troops to support the rebels.

'Kagame implicated'

Some 800,000 people have been displaced in resource-rich eastern DR Congo since the M23 launched its rebellion in April 2012.

Like Rwanda's leadership, the group mostly comes from the Tutsi community.

But Rwanda denies backing the rebels.

The UN has given residents of the main city in eastern DR Congo, Goma, until 1400 GMT on Thursday to disarm, warning force will be used if they fail to do so.

A new 3,000-strong UN intervention brigade is in the area to tackle various rebels, including the M23.

The four deserters, who included a man who described himself a captain in the Rwandan army, spoke to the BBC on condition of anonymity.

He deserted after seeing many innocent people die, the man said.

He described Rwanda's President Paul Kagame as the commander-in-chief of the M23.

"Whatever he says has to be done," he said.

Mr Kagame's spokeswoman Yolande Makolo dismissed the allegations as nonsense.

"We need to stop the cycle of rumours, propaganda and blame and get on with the business of building enduring peace," she said.

Another deserter, who described himself as a medical student, told the BBC he was "kidnapped" by soldiers in the border town of Gisenyi in August 2012, and taken across the border where he treated more than 300 fellow recruits wounded in fighting.

"They took them to the frontline before finishing their training," he said.

Rwandan military spokesman Joseph Nzabamwita said he could only comment if the BBC divulged the names of their sources, adding the men must have manufactured the stories to claim asylum.

New York-based pressure group Human Rights Watch (HRW) researcher Carina Tarstaskian said HRW had received similar reports to those of the BBC.

M23 deserters told HRW that Rwandan officers provided them with military training in eastern DR Congo, she said.

HRW was also aware of several Rwandan children who were approached by civilians with the promise of jobs in eastern DR Congo, only to be recruited into M23, Ms Tarstaskian said.


Related articles


  1. 'Deadly environment' plus 'political and social' obstacles hinder Ebola fight, Security Council hears (July 24, 2019)
  2. Ebola outbreak declared an international Public Health Emergency (July 17, 2019)
  3. DR Congo Delays Results of December Election (January 6, 2019)
  4. DRC Seeks Arrest of Presidential Candidate Moise Katumbi (May 19, 2016)
  5. Peacekeepers, Congo Army to Resume Joint Fight Against Rwandan Rebels (January 28, 2016)
  6. Political tensions 'running high' in DR Congo ahead of 2016 elections (October 7, 2015)
  7. UN Report Blames Ugandan Islamists for 237 Killings in DR Congo (May 14, 2015)
  8. DRC Army Putting Pressure on FDLR (April 1, 2015)
  9. Violence in North Kivu Kills 21, Mostly Women, Children (October 18, 2014)
  10. ICC confirms war crimes charges against Bosco Ntaganda (June 10, 2014)
  11. Kerry Calls on Kabila to Honor Constitution (May 4, 2014)
  12. Death toll in Lake Albert boat accident rises to 251 (March 27, 2014)
  13. U.S. sending more personnel to Uganda to hunt LRA leader Joseph Kony (March 24, 2014)
  14. Death toll in Lake Albert boat accident rises to 108 people (March 24, 2014)
  15. DR Congo Takes Chairmanship of COMESA at Summit in Kinshasa (February 26, 2014)
  16. Bosco Ntaganda Attacked Civilians on Ethnic Grounds, ICC Prosecutor Says (February 10, 2014)
  17. New DR Congo amnesty law welcomed by UN envoys (February 5, 2014)
  18. Colonel Mamadou Ndala Is Killed in Ambush (January 2, 2014)
  19. DR Congo, M23 Rebels Sign Declarations Marking End of Kampala Peace Talks (December 12, 2013)
  20. No 'Peace Deal' With Defeated M23 Rebels, DR Congo Says (November 11, 2013)
  21. Congo Will Not Sign a 'Peace Deal' With Defeated M23 Rebels, Government Says (November 6, 2013)
  22. Congo Army Takes Control of Mbuzi Hill From M23 Rebels (November 4, 2013)
  23. Kabila Congratulates Congo Army for Defeating M23 Rebels (October 30, 2013)
  24. Advancing Congo Troops Take Control of Rumangabo From M23 Rebels (October 28, 2013)
  25. Congo Army Liberates Rutshuru, Kiwanja and Kibumba From M23 Rebels (October 27, 2013)
  26. Congo Army Dislodges M23 Rebels From Strategic Town of Kibumba (October 26, 2013)
  27. Congo Army Takes Control of Kibumba After Fighting With M23 Rebels Resumes (October 25, 2013)
  28. U.S. Sanctions Rwanda Over Use of Child Soldiers by M23 Rebels (October 4, 2013)
  29. Rwandan Support for M23 Rebels Frustrates Attempts to End Fighting in Eastern Congo (September 26, 2013)
  30. Ban Ki-moon Confirms M23 Rebels Shelled Rwanda (August 31, 2013)


Live TV Congo Radio en ligne Radio
Available on App Store
Get it on Google Play



Contact Us | About Us | Édition en Français | French Edition

© CongoPlanet.com. All rights reserved.