Congolese Minister of Communication Patrick Muyaya recently described the FDLR, a terrorist group formed by perpetrators of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, as no threat to Rwanda. On February 22, 2026, he wrote on X: Can these #FDLR who fled #Rwanda in 1994 now, 32 years later, represents a threat to the Rwandan regime? On February 25, 2026, at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Canada, he reiterated that the FDLR threat is merely a recycled pretext Rwanda uses to justify military interventions and economic exploitation in eastern DR Congo. This article demonstrates to Patrick Muyaya and those who share his view that the FDLR constitutes the top threat to Rwanda's security. Muyaya can dismiss it as a pretext, but Rwanda cannot compromise its national security, hence its security measures concerning the DR Congo. Following the genocide against the Tutsi, perpetrators fled to the DR Congo, then Zaire. Former President Mobutu Sese Seko refused to disarm them or relocate them far away from Rwanda's border. He allowed them to reorganize mere meters from Rwandan territory. They later united under the FDLR banner, receiving support from successive Congolese administrations: Mobutu Sese Seko, Laurent Kabila, Joseph Kabila, and now Félix Tshisekedi. President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi openly pledged to work with them to overthrow Rwanda's government and liberate the Rwandan people from President Paul Kagame.” Today, the FDLR has full support from the Kinshasa government and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC). Reports confirm that FARDC has integrated FDLR fighters into its ranks and provided them with uniforms, weapons, and ammunition. The Force de Défense Nationale du Burundi (FDNB) also supports them. On January 21, 2025, President Évariste Ndayishimiye told more than 500 youths in Kinshasa of his plan to overthrow Rwanda's democratically elected government. Ndayishimiye publicly acknowledged his support for the Kinshasa-backed FDLR, stating that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Both Tshisekedi and Ndayishimiye aim to defeat AFC/M23, then enable the FDLR to return to Rwanda and finish what they failed to complete in 1994. Yet Muyaya posts on X that a terrorist group supported by two countries and their armies in their plan to overthrow a legitimate government poses no threat because they are 32 years old, as if genocidal organizations cease recruiting. The FDLR receives support from several countries worldwide that officially claim neutrality while enabling its activities. Space constraints prevent discussing all of them, but Belgium warrants examination. On March 17, 2025, the Belgian government deployed troops, tanks, and drones to assist the FARDC, FDNB, Wazalendo militia, Mai Mai, the FDLR, and western mercenaries in eliminating AFC/M23 rebels, despite knowing that Tshisekedi and Ndayishimiye's ultimate objective in eliminating AFC/M23 is enabling the FDLR to return to Rwanda and overthrow its government. The FDLR's primary fundraiser operates from Belgium: Jambo ASBL. Its treasurer, Jean Luc Habyarimana, recently met with Tshisekedi in Kinshasa to strategize the overthrow of Rwanda's government. Some social media sources reveal that Tshisekedi and Ndayishimiye want to transform the FDLR into a new organization, hand it to Jean Luc Habyarimana, and help it overthrow the Government in Kigali. Former South African President Nelson Mandela said, It is hard to be a person who never gives up. Rwanda has fought this terrorist group's insurgencies since 1994. Rwanda has learned the hard lesson and will not give up its obligation to protect its territory and people against the FDLR. The evidence is unambiguous: a genocidal organisation backed by two national governments, their armies, and international supporters operating from Europe does not become less dangerous with age. It becomes more entrenched, more organized, and more capable. Muyaya's dismissal of this threat reveals either willful ignorance or deliberate misdirection. Rwanda's security concerns are legitimate, documented, and existential. No sovereign nation would tolerate a force dedicated to its destruction operating with the support of two states across its border. The FDLR remains what it has always been: the primary threat to Rwanda's security and regional stability.
