The AFC/M23 rebel movement has condemned what it described as the “barbaric slaughtering and systematic massacres” of innocent civilians carried out by DR Congo army and its allies in the country's eastern region. ALSO READ: 80-year-old Congolese reflects on lifetime of injustice, attacks in DR Congo In a statement released on Thursday, September 11, the movement’s spokesperson, Lawrence Kanyuka, accused the Congolese army (FARDC) and its allies, including the Rwandan genocidal militia FDLR, the so-called Wazalendo, foreign mercenaries, and Burundian forces of conducting coordinated attacks targeting civilian populations. “Across all frontlines, including the densely populated areas of Kibati and Kasopo in Walikale, as well as Bibwe, Hembe, and Ruhinzi in Masisi, these forces are conducting a campaign of extermination and terror,” Kanyuka said in the statement published on X. He added that these operations are coordinated from Uvira, a town in South Kivu province that has attracted attention recently amid growing concern about open calls for violence against Banyamulenge communities. ALSO READ: Tshisekedi says 'no dialogue outside' DR Congo Kanyuka stressed that the movement could not stand by in the face of such a humanitarian tragedy. “The AFC/M23 has heard its compatriots' cries of distress and asserts that this tragedy can no longer be ignored,” he said. The statement also expressed outrage over the nature of the violence endured by civilians. “The AFC/M23 condemns in the strongest terms the hate speech, inhumane treatment, acts of cannibalism, repeated massacres, and the climate of terror endured by our compatriots in Uvira, Beni, and Ituri,” Kanyuka declared. ALSO READ: Narratives over evidence: The politicization of human rights in DR Congo He called on the national and international community to recognize the plight of civilians. The current situation is happening in the context of seemingly stalled peace talks between the Congolese government and the AFC/M23 movement that controls swathes of territory in eastern DR Congo. Kanyuka reaffirming the group’s stated commitment to defending and protecting civilian populations.
