M23's unilateral ceasefire a "ploy"

The M23 rebels and Rwandan troops launched a new offensive in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on February 5th, just a day after the armed group unilaterally declared a ceasefire, France 24 with AFP reported on February 5th.

The Congolese government denounced M23’s unilateral ceasefire as a “ploy” after the attack. “This is proof that the unilateral ceasefire that has been declared was, as usual, a ploy,” DRC government spokesman Patrick Muyaya told AFP.

In over three years of fighting between the groups, six ceasefires and truces have been broken.

M23 is one of 100 armed groups that have been competing for a foothold of the mineral-rich eastern Congo in a conflict that has formed one of the world’s biggest humanitarian crises, which has led to the displacement of more than seven million people, the Associated Press reported on December 3rd 2024.

Intense fighting erupted in the early hours of February 5th between the M23, supported by Rwandan backers and Congolese armed forces.

The foreign minister for the Democratic Republic of Congo on February 5th condemned the lack of global action over the attack in the east of the country.

“We see a lot of declarations but we don’t see actions,” Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner told the press following her meeting with her Belgian counterpart in Brussels.

The Kenyan government announced on February 3rd that DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame would attend a joint extraordinary summit of the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in the city of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on February 8th.

France 24 with AFP, The Associated press