A crisis meeting of presidents of the East African Community (EAC) countries on Wednesday, January 29, called on DR Congo to “directly engage with” M23 rebels, among other stakeholders in the conflict in the country’s east. The EAC leaders, who met in the absence of Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, held the extraordinary meeting to discuss the latest escalation in the conflict in eastern DR Congo, where M23 rebels captured Goma, the capital of North Kivu province on Sunday night. ALSO READ: Timeline of events before and after M23 entered Goma Chaired by Kenyan President William Ruto, the crisis meeting was attended by Presidents Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania, Salva Kiir of South Sudan, Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia. “The summit called on all parties to the conflict in eastern DRC to cease hostilities and observe immediate and unconditional ceasefire and facilitate humanitarian access to the affected population,” read a statement issued by the Kenyan presidency. “The summit called for peaceful settlement of the conflicts and strongly urged the Government of the DRC to directly engage with all stakeholders, including the M23 and other armed groups that have grievances.” ALSO READ: Dozens of Congolese soldiers flee to Rwanda President Tshisekedi’s government has ruled out the possibility of peace talks with M23, which they label as a terrorist movement supported by Rwanda. Rwanda dismisses these allegations, pointing to its security concerns about the collaboration of the Congolese army and the FDLR, a group founded by perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The Rwandan government maintains that the conflict should be resolved politically. A mid-December, under the African Union-backed Luanda process, Kinshasa turned down a proposed agreement that would pave the way for direct talks with the rebels, who have been fighting since November 2021. The call by EAC leaders on the Congolese government to engage with M23 came after the rebel group claimed total capture of Goma, a city home to two million people and a hub for international military and humanitarian interventions in the country’s conflict-ridden eastern region. ALSO READ: Rwanda calls for neutralisation of FDLR, withdrawal of foreign troops By Wednesday, the rebel group had solidified its control of Goma, capturing key strategic points, including the airport, border with Rwanda, maritime port, and national radio and television offices, following heavy fighting on Monday. The EAC leader also “expressed concern about the expanding crisis manifesting in attacks on diplomatic missions, embassies and staff based in Kinshasa.” On Tuesday, protests erupted in the Congolese capital as hundreds of people vandalized and set on fire embassies of USA, Belgium, South African, Rwanda, France, Kenya and Uganda. The EAC leaders “urged the government of DRC to protect diplomatic missions, lives and property.” ALSO READ: Kinshasa could have avoided current crisis, says Rwanda envoy The M23 fought the coalition of Congolese armed forces (FARDC), the FDLR, thousands of Burundian soldiers, European mercenaries, Southern African Development Community (SADC) mission and local militias called Wazalendo. The rebels say the fight to protect the Congolese Tutsi communities which have been persecuted by the FDLR and its allied militia. Noting SADC’s involvement in the conflict in eastern DR Congo, the EAC leasers decided on a joint EAC-SADC summit to “deliberate on the way forward.” They also mandated President Ruto to consult with the Chairperson of SADC on the urgent convening of the joint summit in the next few days.
