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Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Bezos, Gates-Backed Mining Firm Expands into DRC

  • KoBold Metals, supported by investors including Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, announced plans to expand operations into the DRC; the company aims to explore for cobalt, copper, and lithium (FT)

Rwanda and DRC Set Deadline for Peace Deal, Sign Declaration of Principles

  • Rwanda and the DRC have agreed to work toward a final peace deal by May 2 to address the M23 insurgency under a Declaration of Principles signed in Washington, D.C., though doubts persist over enforcement mechanisms and the extent of rebel group disengagement (France 24)

DRC Truce Announcement

  • The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) government and M23 rebel fighters agreed to an “immediate” ceasefire following negotiations in Qatar, and the two sides pledged to work toward a more permanent truce (France24)
  • An M23 offensive since January has killed thousands of civilians and taken two of the eastern DRC’s largest cities (Reuters)
  • More than six ceasefires have been announced and collapsed since 2021 (Guardian)

Former President’s Party Suspended

  • The Congolese government suspended Joseph Kabila’s political party, the People’s Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), and ordered a freeze on its assets; the Interior Ministry cited evidence linking Kabila and his network to armed insurgents destabilizing eastern provinces (Reuters)

Kabila Faces Criminal Charges for Rebel Support

  • Congolese prosecutors announced they were initiating criminal proceedings against former President Joseph Kabila for allegedly supporting rebel groups in eastern Congo, particularly the M23 (Bloomberg)

Former President Joseph Kabila Returns

  • Former President Joseph Kabila returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo from self-imposed exile “to participate in peace efforts,” as experts warned of the potentially destabilizing effects of his arrival in Goma (AP)

U.S.-Congo Mineral Deals Advances

  • The Congolese government signed a deal with Erik Prince, founder of Blackwater and a close ally of President Trump, to help recover lost mineral revenues by curbing smuggling and improving tax oversight; meanwhile, U.S. officials reported progress on a minerals-for-security agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo and the State Department confirmed that any future deal will likely involve U.S. private sector partners (Reuters; Bloomberg; Reuters)

Violence and Sexual Abuse Surge in Eastern Congo

  • Fighting killed at least fifty people as government forces clashed with M23 rebels near Goma, and local Wazalendo militia appeared to challenge M23 authority in Bukavu; meanwhile, the UN reported thousands of children have been raped over the past year in eastern Congo, mainly by M23 and Wazalendo affiliates (AP News; France 24)

Fallout of Failed DRC coup

  • Three U.S. citizens who had been jailed in the Democratic of Congo (DRC) and accused of participation in a failed coup attempt last May were transferred to the United States on Tuesday, according to court filings unsealed; they were originally sentenced to death in the DRC, though President Félix Tshisekedi reduced those sentences to life in prison on April 1 (Bloomberg)
  • Qatar helped negotiate their repatriation, an unnamed diplomat told Bloomberg (Bloomberg)

DRC, M23 Rebels Complete First Round of Peace Talks as Parallel Governance Expands

  • Representatives of the DRC and the M23 rebel group concluded an initial round of Qatari-led peace talks, while M23 expanded its parallel administration—including by launching a banking system—in eastern Congo (Critical Threats)
  • Meanwhile, at least thirty-three people have died in one of the worst floods to hit the Democratic Republic of Congo in recent history; thousands have been displaced, as further downpours are forecast for the coming week (BBC)

Potential DRC Minerals Deal

  • Washington is studying a critical minerals deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) designed to encourage U.S. private investment in the country’s mining sector, an Africa advisor to Trump said; the deal would entail greater U.S. backing for the Congolese government, though the nature of that increased support is unclear, the Financial Times reported (FT)

Rebels Leave Key Strategic Town Ahead of Peace Talks

  • M23 rebels have pulled out of the key strategic town of Walikale ahead of talks with the Congolese government scheduled for April 9, locals confirmed; the rebels described the withdrawal as an act of goodwill in advance of the talks (Reuters)

Twenty-Eight Million People Face Severe Hunger Amid War

  • A longstanding humanitarian crisis has been aggravated by ongoing conflict, with 2.5 million more people facing acute hunger since the surge of violence in December, bringing the total to a record 28 million, according to the UN’s World Food Programme and Food and Agriculture Organization (Reuters)
  • Meanwhile, Thomas Lubanga, a convicted war criminal based in Uganda, announced the formation of a new rebel movement, the Convention for the Popular Revolution (CPR), aiming to topple the government in eastern Congo’s Ituri province, adding a new security threat to the region (The East African)

Angola Ends Mediation Role in Eastern Congo Conflict

  • Angola announced its withdrawal from its mediation role in the eastern Congo conflict, citing a breakdown in the ceasefire and accusing the M23 rebels of reneging on their pledge to withdraw from the strategic town of Walikale (Reuters)

M23 Rebels Capture Strategic Town of Walikale, Dismissing Ceasefire Calls

  • On March 20, M23 rebels seized control of the strategic town of Walikale in eastern Congo, dismissing international ceasefire calls and stating that only direct talks with the Congolese government could end the conflict (Reuters)

DRC-Rwanda Meeting in Qatar

  • The three countries issued a joint statement saying all parties were committed “to an immediate and unconditional cease-fire” in the eastern DRC (Bloomberg)
  • An M23 spokesperson did not immediately respond to a question about whether this would lead to a truce; M23 refused to attend peace talks in Angola scheduled for yesterday (BBC)
  • The African Union welcomed the resolution reached at the Doha summit, emphasizing the importance of dialogue and cooperation among regional actors to achieve lasting peace (The New Times)

DRC and Rwandan Presidents Meet to Discuss Conflict, Call for Ceasefire

  • Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame met in Qatar to discuss the ongoing war in the eastern DRC between government forces and M23 rebels, the first meeting between the two heads of state since the outbreak of hostilities in January; the presidents issued a joint statement calling for an “immediate and unconditional” ceasefire (Reuters)

M23 Rebels Pull Out of Peace Talks

  • The M23 rebel group announced it was pulling out of peace talks with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), citing sanctions imposed by the European Union on Rwanda and itself; the DRC confirmed it would still be sending a delegation to the talks (Reuters)
  • Meanwhile, Rwanda and Belgium cut diplomatic ties after Kigali claimed Brussels had used “lies and manipulation to secure an unjustified hostile opinion of Rwanda” and expelled all Belgian diplomats (France24)
  • The diplomatic rift came shortly after the European Union announced it was imposing sanctions on five senior leaders of the M23, four high-ranking military officials in the Rwandan Defense Forces, and the CEO of the Rwanda Mines, Petroleum, and Gas Board for their role in facilitating the war in eastern Congo (Council of the EU)
  • Additionally, President Felix Tshisekedi met with U.S. lawmaker Ronny Jackson to discuss possible American investment in Congo and the current security situation in the east (Reuters)

Thousands of Troops From Malawi, South Africa, and Tanzania Stationed as Part of Southern African Development Community Force Will Gradually Withdraw

  • Public opposition to the force has increased after seventeen peacekeepers were killed in January; South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said the withdrawal also made sense in light of plans for peace talks between the DRC and rebel groups (AP)
  • Meanwhile, M23 forces continued their advance westward toward the strategic town of Walikale in western North Kivu, capturing several villages and striking an alliance with a formerly DRC-aligned militia (Critical Threats)

Angola Plans to Host Direct Negotiations Next Week on Insurgency in Eastern DRC

  • It has invited delegations from the Congolese military and the rebel group M23; the Congolese government confirmed it had received an invitation while a leader of the rebels said such talks are “the only civilized option to resolve the current crisis” (Reuters)

Former President’s Allies Questioned by Military Prosecutor

  • Allies of former DRC President Joseph Kabila were summoned to appear before a military prosecutor as tensions grew over the government’s response to the ongoing conflict in the east (Reuters)

M23 Continues Advance into Mineral-Rich North Kivu Province

  • M23 rebels are reported to be moving deeper into the mineral-rich North Kivu province of the DRC; they have allegedly entered Nyabiondo, a village about one hundred kilometers north of Goma that serves as a strategic juncture on the road to Walikale, the site of the government’s only remaining industrial-grade mine (Al Jazeera)
  • The continued offensive comes as a critical ally of the government, the Group Kabido, announced it was joining the M23 coalition (Reuters)

DRC Government Offers Five Million Dollar Bounty for M23 Leaders

  • The government’s Ministry of Justice announced it was offering a reward of five million dollars “to any person who helps arrest the convicts Corneille Nangaa, Bertrand Bisimwa, and Sultani Makenga,” three senior figures within the M23 coalition (Al Jazeera)
  • Meanwhile, the UN reported that at least sixty-three thousand refugees have left the DRC in recent weeks, pouring into Burundi and overwhelming relief networks there; nearly forty-five thousand of these are currently being held inside an open-air stadium in Rugombo, where conditions are reported to be extremely poor (Arab News)

UNHCR: Almost Sixty-Three Thousand People Have Fled DRC for Burundi in Less Than a Month

  • Burundi’s largest such influx in decades has overwhelmed shelters and aid resources; as clashes between rebels and government forces in the DRC continue, the refugee agency has appealed for emergency funding (UNHCR; Reuters)

Thirty-Five Dead After Pro-Government Militia Attack in Eastern Congo

  • Members of the Wazalendo, a civilian militia affiliated with the Congolese army, killed at least thirty-five civilians during an attack on the village of Tambi, North Kivu province (Brussels Times)
  • Meanwhile, a further eleven people were killed in a bout of vigilante violence in M23-held Bukavu (Reuters)