The Rwandan-backed M23 group announced a one-sided ceasefire after pressure to provide a safe corridor for humanitarian aid and displaced civilians. This comes after M23 militants took over the vital city of Goma in eastern DRC.

M23 announced that the ceasefire will go into effect on Tuesday.

The announcement came shortly after the UN health agency said at least 900 people were killed in last week’s fighting in Goma between the militants and Congolese forces.

Goma's significance lies in the trillions of dollars in minerals it possesses. The Democratic Republic of the Congo accused Rwanda of seeking to exploit Congo's natural mineral wealth, a key resource for the technology sector.

The DRC accuses Rwanda of seeking to exploit the region’s vast mineral wealth—essential for global electronics—a claim supported by UN experts who state that Kigali exercises "de facto control" over the M23.  

Rwanda denies both the accusation and any military involvement, asserting that its primary interest is eradicating a group composed of Hutu militants formed in the aftermath of the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Why Now?

G7 Foreign Ministers urged the parties involved in the conflict to go back to negotiations. They called for a “rapid, safe and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians."

A joint summit by the regional blocs of southern and eastern Africa is set for next week. The presidents of DRC and Rwanda will both be present at the summit. 

Congolese authorities expressed their willingness to engage in talks, as long as they're within the context of previous peace agreements. Meanwhile, Rwanda and the militant group accused the DRC of not fulfilling their obligations to previous agreements.

This chapter is part of a decades-long ethnic conflict between the DRC and rebel groups. M23 and Rwanda claim that Tutsis are being persecuted by the Hutus and other militias responsible for the 1994 Tutsi genocide.

Many Hutus fled to DRC following the genocide and founded the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda group, which Kigali claims is “fully integrated” into the Congolese military, which, in its turn, denies the charges.

Today marks the 29th anniversary of the #RwandanGenocide , also named the genocide against #Tutsis in 1994, which resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. pic.twitter.com/n3AzPDIUY3

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) April 7, 2023