AFC/M23 Rebels Withdraw 30 Kilometres in South Kivu as U.S. Pressure and Army Action Bite
Updated
Updated · Reuters · May 11
AFC/M23 Rebels Withdraw 30 Kilometres in South Kivu as U.S. Pressure and Army Action Bite
4 articles · Updated · Reuters · May 11
AFC/M23 fighters pulled back over the weekend from Kabunambo to Luvungi in South Kivu — a retreat of about 30 kilometres and the first significant battlefield shift in months.
Congolese army officials said the withdrawal followed combined military pressure on the ground and diplomatic pressure from Washington, coming two weeks after U.S. sanctions on former president Joseph Kabila over alleged rebel links.
Uvira, briefly seized by the rebels in December before another U.S.-pressured withdrawal, remains a key reference point for the latest retreat; families who fled to Burundi have started returning, according to a local civil society leader.
Fighting still persists across eastern Congo despite U.S.-backed mediation, and AFC/M23 political coordinator Corneille Nangaa accused Washington in a May 7 letter of lacking credibility after its minerals deal with Kinshasa.
Is Washington's minerals-for-security deal fueling or fixing the long-running conflict in Congo?
Can Congo's new paramilitary 'Mining Guard' secure its mineral wealth from rebels and foreign powers?