Rwanda stands resolute in refusing to again experience the horrors of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi and will defend itself against the existential threat posed by a genocidal militia supported by the Congolese government. ALSO READ: Kagame press secretary slams international hypocrisy in dealing with DR Congo conflict This was underscored by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Amb. Olivier Nduhungirehe, in an interview with Swiss broadcaster Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS), as he spoke out about the security threat posed by FDLR, a DR Congo-based terrorist militia founded by remnants of the masterminds of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. Kinshasa and its allies maintain a false narrative that the raging conflict in the country’s east is about mineral resources. But the genocidal militia is at the heart of the insecurity affecting eastern DR Congo. The Rwandan government has reiterated that the security challenges posed by the genocidal militia and its splinter groups are of very serious concern for Rwanda. The militia’s plan is to return to Rwanda, forcefully, and continue its genocidal agenda. ALSO READ: Why Congolese army-FDLR alliance is an evil enterprise The minister said: “Rwanda will never accept to relive what happened in our country because of this group of genocidaires (FDLR) who are maintained by the Congolese government.” ALSO READ: Sanctions against Rwanda will undermine peace efforts in DR Congo – Kabarebe Kinshasa also alleges that Kigali supports AFC/M23, a rebellion that is fighting for governance that supports basic human rights, secures all Congolese citizens, and addresses the root causes of conflict in lawless DR Congo. [VIDÉO]: « Le Rwanda n’acceptera jamais de revivre ce qui s’est passé chez nous à cause de ce groupe de génocidaires (les FDLR) qui sont maintenus par le gouvernement de la RDC. »| Le Ministre @onduhungirehe dans une interview avec @RTSinfo pic.twitter.com/IEeLZpIjX6 — Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Int'l Cooperation (@RwandaMFA) February 26, 2025 Rwanda denies the allegation and accuses DR Congo of habouring and supporting FDLR. ‘Not afraid of being diplomatically isolated’ On February 20, the U.S. sanctioned Gen. (Rtd) James Kabarebe, Minister of State for Regional Cooperation, alleging he serves as a liaison between the Rwandan government and AFC/M23. ALSO READ: Rwandans ‘express deep concern’ over UK's stance on DR Congo crisis, broader implications for region’s peace On February 25, the UK government claimed that Rwanda’s army is fighting alongside AFC/M23 in DR Congo, adding that until significant progress is made, the UK will take measures including pausing direct bilateral financial aid to Rwanda. On February 13, the European Parliament passed a resolution accusing Rwanda of controlling AFC/M23. The resolution also proposed potential sanctions, including freezing direct budget support to Rwanda. ALSO READ: Why are AFC/M23 rebels fighting in eastern DR Congo? “We are not afraid of being diplomatically isolated, or we are not afraid of sanctions. What we would be afraid of is leaving our country and our population defenceless,” Nduhugirehe said, adding “and it is the existential threat that exists that scares us much more than these international sanctions.” [EXTRAIT]: « Ceci est une FAKE NEWS » réponse du Ministre @onduhungirehe à la désinformation de la RDC et la manipulation des bilans humanitaires. Pour visionner l’interview au complet: https://t.co/noZYZqgUM1 pic.twitter.com/GhFstHuU3Z — Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Int'l Cooperation (@RwandaMFA) February 26, 2025 The escalating war between a Congolese government army coalition that includes FDLR, over 10,000 Burundian troops, 1,600 thousands of Congolese militia elements grouped in what is called Wazalendo, and South Africa-led SADC forces, against M23 rebels started in 2021. The rebel group’s resurgence, after 10 years, was rooted in the historical persecution of the Kinyarwanda-speaking Congolese community in DR Congo’s North Kivu Province, on the border with Rwanda. ALSO READ: Who are the AFC/M23 rebels, why are they fighting? But M23 is now a member of a larger rebel coalition, Alliance fleuve Congo (AFC), created in December 2023. The AFC’s leaders have said they are undeterred to march to the capital, Kinshasa, as they aim to confront “poor governance and a failed state.” They have vowed to uproot tribalism, nepotism, corruption, and genocide ideology, among other vices, widespread in DR Congo. Last week, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution that condemned the offensive and advance of AFC/M23 rebels in their country’s east but made no mention of the fundamental issues including the fact that a genocidal ideology, and agenda, remains central to the crisis. When the Rwanda Patriotic Army took over power and stopped the Genocide against the Tutsi, in July 1994, the ousted genocidal regime’s army (ex-FAR), politicians, and Interahamwe militia that had committed Genocide – runaway, en masse, with their weapons, to eastern DR Congo, then known as Zaire. ALSO READ: Why genocide ideology doesn’t dissolve three decades after dispersion of genocidaires The remnants of the ousted genocidal regime’s army and millitia later banded together into what they called the Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR). In 2000, soon after the US government listed it as a terrorist organization following its murder of American tourists in Uganda’s Bwindi Forest, they formed FDLR so as to evade or distance themselves from their horrendous crimes. On May 1, 2000, its initiators gathered in a large hall in Lubumbashi, DR Congo’s second-largest city in the southeasternmost part, along the border with Zambia, and formed FDLR.
