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UN Forces of Intervention Brigade to Launch Attacks on M23 Rebels This Week

Tanzanian Forces of the UN Intervention Brigade training  in Eastern DRC in July 2013

Tanzanian Forces of the UN Intervention Brigade training in Eastern DRC in July 2013

“After 4pm on Thursday, 1 August[2013], they[any individuals in the area of North Kivu province that includes Goma and Sake who are not members of national security forces] will be considered an imminent threat of physical violence to civilians and MONUSCO will take all necessary measures to disarm them, including by the use of force in accordance with its mandate and rules of engagement,” The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), known as MONUSCO, announced today on July 30, 2013 threatening to  use the UN Forces of the Intervention Brigade (FIB) to enforce a security zone in and around the provincial capital of Goma, in Easten Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

This means that in 48 hours, the FIB is expected to launch ground attacks against M23 Congolese rebels supported by the Rwandan Defense Forces (RDF).

The statement by MONUSCO has also accused the M23 rebels of indiscriminate killings targeting civilians before and during the latest attacks.  “In these attacks, the latest of which started on 14 July, the M23 has used indiscriminate and indirect fire, including by heavy weapons, resulting in civilian casualties,” MONUSCO said.

MONUSCO also said that the military  operations will be expanded to other areas to flush out the M23 rebels. The next most likely next area of operations could be Sake  and Rutshuru.  Last week, M23 rebels looted the town of Kiwandja and rounded up civilians, mostly young men  forcing them to join its ranks (see our article:  M23 Rebels Loot Kiwandja, in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Cong0, on July 26).

The 48 h ultimatum by MONUSCO may signal  the start of the much awaited ground operations by  the 3000 forces strong UN Intervention Brigade.

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  • Ben August 4, 2013, 11:13 pm

    Carlos,my brother…do you really think only Tutsi are being killed in eastern congo? how about the six millions of congolese who have died in the hand of RPF ? who had the freedom to enter Congo at any time kill people and return to Rwanda.This is the problem waiting Mr Paul Kagame when he leaves Office,because people will want to find answers, and only him and his Gvmnt must answers to those questions. I also think, it will be really helpful to stop spreading lies on this website,we all want peace in great lake region it’s for our own interest all of ours :Congolese,Rwandese,Burundian,Ugandan .this is my message brother.We must all reject the ideas of thinking that this tribe or people of certain country in the great lake region are above others.We must try to bring back fraternity which was there before 1994.I think this may help us.thanks man

  • Verité Pure August 3, 2013, 10:59 am

    Carlos,

    Tutsi are not fighting because they have seen the consequence of Genocide. They are fighting because they can’t simply fathom a country there are not major leaders. You doubt me? They attacked Rwanda in 1963, 1965, 1968, 1990 to regain the reign the lost democratically in 1961. They were not butchered as u put it then!

    1) In 1972 Tutsi in Burundi butchered Hutu and through the years that followed until in 1993 they killed the Democratically elected President Ndadaye.
    2) In 1990 Tutsi attacked Rwanda and when commanding post fell to Kagame after the fall of Rwigyema, they started massacring Hutu in the North of Rwanda ( Byumba and Ruhengeri)
    3) In 1994 they downed the plane of President Habyarimana who had signed a peace agreement with them to integrate them in the army because they wanted it all. They knew very well mass civilian killing would ensue and they did anyway.
    4) In 1996, they (Tutsi still) attacked the Congo claiming to secure their borders against interahamwe. They went on to Kinshasa occupying an area 89 times bigger than Rwanda itself. During this process they killed hundreds of thousands of Rwanda refugees. I witnessed some of that though I was but a little boy.
    5) In 1998, after Kabila refused to give them the Kivu provinces they killed him and started another rebellion ( RCD ) trying to oust the son. In the pretence to protect Rwanda borders, they flew troops to Kitona, some 2000KM away. These same troops attacked Kinshasa a few days later. At that time, there was no Interahamwe in Kinshasa.
    6) In 2007 (or around that) Nkunda launched his mutiny. Supposedly to fight for his Tutsi clan persecuted by everyone apparently especially the FDLR. How come the FDLR never diminish since 1994? If they are genocidaires they should only be those of 1994. If that were true, that force should be done by now!!
    7) Now the M23 are also claiming to fight the FDLR? Oh pleaseeeee…

    QUESTIONS:

    1) Why can’t tutsi stand the idea of someone else governing than them ?
    2) Why do they want to be treated so differently from everyone else? I mean, why can’t they stand the fact that someone else is militarily and intellectually stronger? >> arrogance?

  • Kanisius August 2, 2013, 2:41 pm

    Carlos,
    The world is fed with lies! Did Sadam have WMD? In 1994, Mobutu army was wrongly accused of chasing congolese tutsi. Some of us who saw how these guys sold their properties to travel to heaven (rwanda) “the Israel promised land” as they use to say know exactly the reality. It is the same way they lied to you that FDLR killed them. Who is working closely with FDLR more than Kagame? The recent killed colonel Soki, where was he from? Not from a meeting with Makenga? Is Makenga an FDLR? Who does Makenga work for? Isn’t Kagame? Then conclude yourself!!!!!

  • Benzion August 2, 2013, 1:02 am

    Nobody want to exterminate the tutsi… What is needed in that part of the world is Justice for all the innocents murdered… As of today, Kagame and his hench men( Rwanda militaray complex and the ex. RPF) are the biggest criminals of the whole region… The have been occupying the East part of Congo over 15 years… No more time for the fallacy excuses of tutsi genocide… A crime commited by Tutsi or Hutu are considered crimes… there is not disctinction… Justice it’s overdue in Congo… The bunch of blood suckers should brought to justice… From Kagame, to James kaberebe, Nkunda, Mutebesi, Bosco tangana, Museveni and the rwanda hutus fighters should all pay for their horrible crimes…. A time of reckoning… stop spreading your lies….

  • eric mugabo August 1, 2013, 9:53 am

    Fucked up these Rwandan Congolese. Hunted in the DRC and Unwanted (second class) in Rwanda. Where should they go?

    • Verité Pure August 3, 2013, 10:40 am

      They should be like any other congolese damn it! And accept to live without necessarily wanting to dominate everybody as if it’s an automatic order from heaven

  • Ben July 31, 2013, 5:02 pm

    I think the End of M23 is near…and that of Paul Kagame as well.Because after the defeat of the M23 Kagame will take this as humiliations to him personally and of the RDF.That will cause more problem for him in his gvmnt,they will not have somewhere else to go and steal natural resources ,kill innocent peoples ,manipulate some crazy tribes by telling them they are persecuted ,so must raise up against the gvmnt .This is how our compatriot Congolese Tutsi have been used for so long by Kagame.While Kagame steal from DRC and go build Rwanda ,he always told them to remain in DRC to take up arms to claim what belong to them…and if they try to run the war and crossed into Rwanda ,they are seen like refugees or second class citizen.My question is this to them are they Congolese or Rwandese ,if they say they are Congolese they must support the FARDC and denounce all manipulation from Kigali.Because if they don’t do so they will be creating problem with their country man who are Congolese and not Rwandese.

    • carlos August 1, 2013, 10:24 pm

      i don,t agree with you completely,this congolese tutsi were butchered by FDLR,that is why they took arms to fight those killers,i think fighting is for their interest,do you think congolese tutsi will be in peace when kigali is under genociders? no way,even kabila has started killing tutsi congolese many years ago up to now,but what i tell you is tutsi will never vanish on this earth,even if the whole world left them alone in hands of killers,we all know that nobody helped tutsi during genocide,they were watching like watching movie tutsi die,killed by interahamwe with support from out side,only RPF,only RPF stoodup and say no!,now i can see people have just started to play with tutsi life,even countries i thought they had learned from the mistake they made during tutsi genocide,up to now they have not condemned the genocide of congolese tutsi which started in 1994 up to this moment,many tutsi are killed in goma under monusco supervision,FDLR have been integrating into FRDC while monusco watching,but whatever bad the world plan over tutsi both tutsi and hutu are prepared to fight it,because they have seen the consequence of genocide,and all this evils are planned by foreigners and executed by africans.