Masad Boulos, senior advisor to US President Donald Trump, said on Friday September 12, that a Prisoner Exchange Mechanism between the Congolese governement and AFC/M23 rebels had been signed, describing it as a “pivotal step” toward de-escalating hostilities and restoring peace in eastern DR Congo. ALSO READ: Renewed Doha talks ‘critical step’ to peace deal, says Trump advisor After the two parties failed to reach peace deal in August, leaders of the rebel movement, which controls swathes of territory in eastern DR Congo, said Qatar-mediated talks in Doha would resume if the government released prisoners. This would be part of confidence-building measures in the implementation of the Declaration of Principles signed by the two parties on July 19, paving the way for a peace agreement. ALSO READ: AFC/M23 delegation 'not in Doha to negotiate peace deal' The prisoner exchange deal will see the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) serve as a neutral intermediary to facilitate the identification, verification, and safe release of detainees held by both parties. “We deeply appreciate Qatar's critical work with the ICRC on this process and encourage parties to use this momentum to make additional progress on reaching a final peace agreement,” Boulos, Trump's Senior Advisor for Africa and an observer in the Doha talks, said in a statement posted on X. Neither Kinshasa nor AFC/M23 made announcements about the deal, which comes after the peace talks stalled, as both parties accused each other of violating the ceasefire agreed on July 19. Since early August, hostilities have resumed on the ground in eastern DR Congo, with the rebels accusing the government coalition of drone attacks, new deployments and targeted attacks on civilians. Despite the Doha declaration, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi on August 30 said he would not negotiate with the rebels, accusing them of getting foreign support. He also dismissed foreign mediation in talks, saying there would never be any dialogue outside of our own initiative. The impact of the prisoner exchange deal remains to be seen.
