The Tutsi-led M23 has been waging an insurgency in the central African country’s violence-torn east since 2022. Congo and the United Nations accuse neighbouring Rwanda of backing the group with its own troops and weapons. Rwanda denies this but says it has taken so-called defensive measures. Rebels had been stationed 10km from Kalembe for nearly eight months before they seized control of the town on Sunday morning from the Congolese armed forces and the Wazalendo alliance of armed groups loyal to the government, Kabaki Alimasi, an official from Walikale territory where Kalembe is located, told Reuters.

Source: The North Africa Journal October 21, 2024 15:55 UTC