What is happening in the DR Congo – Full report

What is happening in the DR Congo now? The M23 rebel group was advancing towards another city in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) a UN expert said on Friday, just days after seizing the key eastern city of Goma, which is close to the Rwandan border.

Large parts of the city are now under rebel control in what’s considered the worst escalation of a long-running conflict in more than a decade. The M23 have been financed and armed extensively to take on a country the size of the DRC.

The world media would have you believe that this is just the workings of Rwanda, but Rwanda is a poor country, rebuilding itself after the genocide in 1994. They can’t support their own population, nevermind fund an second army.

What is happening in the DR Congo

What’s at stake in DR Congo

The DR Congo has large reserves of wealth, offers other opportunities to the M23 rebel group and the corporations who are supporting them. They are the cones who will benefit the most, Rwanda or he DRC will not produce any products using cobalt or other minerals.

The companies that will benefit the most will be S&P 500, FTSE 500 companies, who have a vested interest in the supply of those minerals.

Over 1 million people have been displaced over the years, with hundreds of thousands camping in dire conditions on the outskirts of Goma.

How is Rwanda involved?

Rwanda provides material support to the M23, according to several reports by an independent panel of United Nations experts. It has troops in North Kivu — up to 4,000, according to the U.N. panel reports — and its special forces oversee M23 units.

Countries including the U.K. and Germany have threatened to cancel aid to Rwanda, significantly, they haven’t. 

UN expert says M23 not far from Bukavu

UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, said that M23 fighters and Rwandan Defence Force (RDF) were around 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Bukavu and were moving towards a major airport, north of the city.

Rwanda denies backing the rebels, but the UN has made repeated calls for Kigali to withdraw forces from DRC and bring an end to support for the group.

The UN meanwhile said that 700 people have been killed and another 2,800 injured since the latest escalation.

DR Congo: What role do minerals play in the conflict?

The DRC has substantial untapped gold, cobalt, and high-grade copper reserves, but equally significant security risks accentuated by a lack of robust infrastructure. The country boasts some of the highest quality copper reserves globally.

The Democratic Republic of Congo holds more than 70% of the world’s coltan reserves, the rare mineral is used to manufacture electric car batteries, mobile phones and other electronic devices. The DRC produces 0% of Coltan products.

The DR Congo accuses Rwanda of looking to exploit the region’s mineral wealth and take control over land in the DRC.

Rwanda denies this and says its primary objective is to eradicate a group composed of Hutu militias formed in the wake of the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

The SADC pledge unwavering commitment to the DRC

SADC pledge unwavering commitment to the DRC. The leaders from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) held crisis talks in Zimbabwe on Friday.

The regional bloc reaffirmed its “solidarity and unwavering commitment to continue supporting the DRC in its pursuit of safeguarding its independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.”

SADC leaders called for an immediate joint summit of SADC and the East African Community (EAC) of which Rwanda and the DRC are members.

The summit condemned the deadly attacks on the SADC Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC) regional intervention force.

The SADC mission began deploying troops in DRC in December 2023 after Kinshasa sought support under the bloc’s mutual defense pact.