During an East African Community (EAC) summit held in Tanzania, leaders disclosed that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has opted against extending the mandate of a regional force deployed to quell disturbances in its volatile eastern region.
The EAC initially dispatched troops to this strife-torn area in November of the previous year in response to the resurgence of the M23 rebel group.
Following the summit, a statement outlined the decision stating that the DRC wouldn’t prolong the EAC regional force’s mandate beyond December 8, 2023.
The leaders instructed defense force chiefs from both the EAC and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to convene before December 8 and present their recommendations to the defense ministers.
These recommendations would subsequently be forwarded to the summit for deliberation on the next steps.
The fate of this deployment had been uncertain after DR Congo President Felix Tshisekedi criticized the force.
However, in September, the EAC resolved to maintain the troops’ presence on the ground until the following month.
The eastern region of the mineral-rich DRC remains beleaguered by numerous armed groups, a legacy of the regional conflicts in the 1990s and 2000s.
The M23, predominantly led by Tutsis, has captured significant portions of North Kivu province since resuming armed activities in late 2021 after a period of dormancy.
As per the United Nations, over the past six weeks, approximately 450,000 individuals have been displaced from their residences, with 200,000 people cut off from crucial humanitarian aid.
The DRC currently harbors close to seven million displaced individuals, primarily concentrated in the eastern region.
Accusations against Rwanda, a smaller neighboring country and an EAC member, for supporting the rebels have been repeatedly made by the DRC, though Rwanda denies these claims.
Several Western countries, including the United States, along with independent UN experts, have also concluded that Rwanda is providing backing to the rebels.
Additionally, during the summit, Somalia was granted admission to the EAC, becoming a part of the grouping alongside Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
