UN armoured personnel carriers deploy outdoors Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025.
Moses Sawasawa/AP
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Moses Sawasawa/AP
GOMA, Congo — Preventing with M23 rebels in japanese Congo has left a minimum of 13 peacekeepers and overseas troopers useless, United Nations and military officers stated Saturday.
M23 has made vital territorial positive aspects in latest weeks, encircling the japanese metropolis of Goma, which has round 2 million folks and is a regional hub for safety and humanitarian efforts.
The U.N. Safety Council moved up an emergency assembly on the escalating violence to Sunday morning (10 am EST). Congo requested the assembly, which had initially been scheduled for Monday.
On Saturday, Congo’s military stated it fended off an M23 offensive in direction of Goma with the assistance of its allied forces, together with U.N. troops and troopers from the Southern African Growth Group Mission, also called SAMIDRC.
“The Rwandan-backed M23 is clearly exploiting the presidential transition within the U.S. to advance on Goma — placing hundreds extra civilians in danger,” Kate Hixon, advocacy director for Africa at Amnesty Worldwide US, instructed the Related Press.
Congo, the US and U.N. specialists accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which is especially made up of ethnic Tutsis who broke away from the Congolese military greater than a decade in the past.
Rwanda’s authorities denies the declare, however final yr acknowledged that it has troops and missile programs in japanese Congo to safeguard its safety, pointing to a buildup of Congolese forces close to the border. U.N. specialists estimate there are as much as 4,000 Rwandan forces in Congo.
The burning wreckage of a white armored combating automobile carrying UN markings could possibly be seen on a street between Goma and Sake on Saturday, the place a lot of the combating was concentrated in latest days.
A UN armoured personnel service burns, throughout clashes with M23 rebels outdoors Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025.
Moses Sawasawa/AP
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Moses Sawasawa/AP
Two South African peacekeepers had been killed Friday, whereas a Uruguayan Blue Helmet was killed Saturday, a U.N. official instructed The Related Press. The official spoke on situation of anonymity as a result of they weren’t licensed to talk on the matter publicly.
Moreover, three Malawian peacekeepers had been killed in japanese Congo, the United Nations in Malawi stated Saturday.
Seven South African troopers from the SAMIDRC had been additionally killed throughout clashes with M23 during the last two days, South Africa’s division of protection stated in an announcement.
Uruguay’s army in an announcement issued Saturday recognized its member killed in Congo as Rodolfo Álvarez, who was a part of the Uruguay IV Battalion. The unit, in keeping with the assertion, is working “uninterruptedly to adjust to the United Nations mandate, in addition to to ensure the evacuation of non-essential civilian and army personnel from town of Goma.”
“Varied measures have been taken to enhance the safety of our troops, who’re working in adversarial circumstances,” the army stated. It added that 4 Uruguayan peacekeepers had been additionally injured. Three of them remained in Goma whereas a fourth one was evacuated to Uganda for remedy.
Since 2021, Congo’s authorities and allied forces, together with SAMIDRC and U.N. troops, have been conserving M23 away from Goma.
The U.N peacekeeping pressure, also called MONUSCO, entered Congo greater than 20 years in the past and has round 14,000 peacekeepers on the bottom.
South Africa’s protection minister, Angie Motshekga, was visiting the nation’s troops stationed in Congo as a part of the U.N. peacekeeping mission the day the troopers had been killed.
