The Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), which includes the M23 rebels, condemned what it called “a series of joint military operations” carried out by SADC forces in coordination with the Congolese armed forces (FARDC), FDLR, and Congolese ethnic militias called Wazalendo in and around Goma. This follows an exchange of gunfire on the night of Friday, April 11 in Goma, the capital of North Kivu province that has been in the hands of the rebels since late January. ALSO READ: DR Congo crisis: North Kivu governor calms Goma residents after night gunfire The clashes in Goma between the AFC/M23 and the government coalition occurred around 10pm on Friday in Lac Vert and Keshero neighbourhoods, and they were the first since the rebels took control of the strategic city. In a statement released Saturday, April 12, the AFC/M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka criticised the April 11 attacks, saying they “threaten the stability and safety of civilians.” ALSO READ: AFC/M23 vows to neutralize threats against civilians in Walikale, Minembwe “These attacks violate the existing SADC agreements and consequently delay the rehabilitation of Goma airport,” Kanyuka said. “They compel the AFC/M23 to demand the immediate withdrawal of [SADC] forces and constrain us to demand the immediate surrender of FARDC troops stationed within MONUSCO facilities to our organization.” The rebels and the SADC mission on March 28 signed an agreement on the withdrawal of the Southern African forces from DR Congo. The rebel movement said the recent attempts by government coalition to retake Goma had been “decisively repelled,” and accused the government of undermining peace efforts through continued aggression. “Despite our restraint in response to these persistent criminal acts, the AFC/M23 finds itself compelled to reconsider its position in order to prioritize the safety of the Congolese population and of [SADC] elements present in liberated areas.” ALSO READ: AFC/M23 warns of retaliation if Congolese army attacks persist in Walikale Kanyuka said the rebel alliance would protect civilians in the areas it controls “whatever the cost” that might take. The AFC/M23 rebellion fights to uproot tribalism, corruption, and genocidal violence against Congolese Tutsi communities, who are targeted by the DR Congo-backed Rwandan genocidal militia, FDLR. FDLR, a UN-sanctioned group founded in 2000 by remnants of the masterminds of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, also poses an existential threat to Rwanda.
