Kenya sending troops to eastern Drcongo to fight rebel advance
Nairobi, Kenya – Kenya’s President William Ruto announced on Wednesday that Nairobi was deploying troops to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in a joint regional operation against a rebel offensive.
The mineral-rich DRC is struggling to contain dozens of armed groups whose recent advances in the country’s east have
revived old animosities and led to a surge in tensions with neighbouring Rwanda.
Leaders of the seven-nation East African Community (EAC) bloc, in which Kenya is the regional heavyweight, agreed in April to establish a joint force to help restore security in the DRC.
Speaking at a ceremony in Nairobi to announce the deployment, Ruto said the troops were ‘on a mission to protect humanity’. “The destiny of DRC is intertwined with ours,” he added, without giving details of the de
ployment schedule. “We will not allow any armed groups, criminals and terrorists to deny us our shared prosperity.” Kenya will command the force, which will also include soldiers from Burundi, South Sudan and Uganda.
A Rwandan contingent will be deployed along the border, after Kinshasa objected to Kigali’s participation in any operations within the DRC.
‘Military escalation’
Military officials in Nairobi declined to reveal the number of Kenyan soldiers involved, citing ‘obvious security reasons’.
A UN force, known by its French acronym of MONUSCO, is already operating in the DRC.
Burundi and Uganda also sent troops to the DRC earlier at the invitation of the Congolese government. The M23 rebels, a mostly Congolese group, resumed fighting in late 2021 after lying dormant for years, accusing the DRC government of failing to honour an agreement to integrate its fighters into the army.
Fresh advances by the militia across North Kivu province last month prompted the UN peacekeeping mission there to increase its alert level and boost support for the Congolese army.
The M23’s resurgence has had resounding repercussions for relations in central Africa. The DRC accuses Rwanda of backing the militia, claims denied by Kigali.
On Saturday, Kinshasa decided to expel Rwanda’s ambassador. In turn, Rwanda accused Kinshasa of being ‘on the path of continued military escalation’.