A Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit on Thursday, March 13, terminated the mandate of the regional bloc’s military mission in eastern DR Congo and “directed the commencement of a phased withdrawal” of its troops from the country, according to a related communique. ALSO READ: M23’s Makenga welcomes Angola-mediated negotiations with Kinshasa This came a day after it was announced that direct peace talks between AFC/M23 rebels and the Congolese government are set to start in Luanda, Angola, on March 18. Zimbabwe president Emmerson Mnangagwa, in his capacity as chairperson of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on Thursday chaired the bloc’s extraordinary summit on the DR Congo crisis, during which he urged that “urgent action is needed to implement solutions.” ALSO READ: Are SADC troops on verge of leaving eastern DR Congo? The summit aimed at deciding on the course of action to take in addressing the crisis in eastern DR Congo where the bloc’s deployment of forces has come under scrutiny for assisting the Congolese government fight its own people, working alongside genocidal armed groups like FDLR which target Rwanda. “Urgent action is needed to implement solutions, strengthen security, and protect communities. Together, we will secure our region,” read a message posted by Mnangagwa on X. ALSO READ: High time South African forces left eastern DR Congo - M23 spokesperson Elias Magosi, the Executive Secretary of SADC, said that a lasting solution to peace in eastern DR Congo can only be achieved through inclusive diplomatic efforts and dialogue among all state and non-state parties to the conflict, both military and non-military. ALSO READ: ‘Are M23 not Congolese citizens?’ Veteran German ambassador challenges EU diplomat “The region, therefore, fully supports the call for the reopening of diplomatic channels through existing frameworks of the Nairobi and Luanda Peace Processes,” he noted. The SADC bloc convened a virtual extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Organ Troika on March 6, and reportedly agreed to withdraw the regional bloc’s military mission in eastern DR Congo saying it had become unattainable. Up to 200 SADC soldiers who had been fighting in eastern DR Congo were repatriated after they were given passage through Rwanda, on February 24. ALSO READ: 'Are you ready to fight?' When M23 commander confronted SADC camp Last month, Malawi announced it was withdrawing its troops from eastern DR Congo. The SAMIDRC forces – comprising South African, Malawi and Tanzanian troops – are confined to their bases in AFC/M23 rebel-controlled territory. Their movements are being controlled by the rebels. The war between the Congolese government army coalition that includes FDLR, a DR Congo-based terrorist militia founded by remnants of the masterminds of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, over 10,000 Burundian troops, 1,600 European mercenaries, South Africa-led SADC forces, as well as UN peacekeepers, against M23 rebels started in 2021. M23 is now part of a larger – and bourgeoning – rebel coalition, Alliance fleuve Congo (AFC), created in December 2023. More than 2,100 Congolese police officers and 890 soldiers on February 22 joined the AFC/M23 rebellion in Bukavu, the capital of DR Congo’s South Kivu Province. ALSO READ: M23 are no terrorists, the Congolese army is – say Bukavu residents Since January, the rebels advanced across North and South Kivu provinces, liberating swathes of territory, after repulsing the vast Congolese army coalition. Following heavy fighting triggered by constant violations by the Congolese army coalition, of an earlier set ceasefire, on January 27, the rebels captured Goma, the capital of North Kivu Province, and restore order there. As the security situation in South Kivu deteriorated amid reports of violence, looting, and abuses propagated by the Congolese army coalition, the rebels moved again. They first captured the strategic airport of Kavumu, before moving south to capture the regional capital, Bukavu, on February 15. The rebel movement is fighting for governance that supports basic human rights, secures all Congolese citizens, and addresses the root causes of conflict. It has vowed to uproot tribalism, nepotism, corruption, and genocide ideology, among other vices, widespread in DR Congo.
