Bukavu in Dr. Congo fails on the M23 rebels supported by Rwanda

M23 rebels supported by Rwanda have occurred in Bukavu, the second largest city in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and confiscated the office of regional governor.

Some people lined the streets to clap and cheer the fighters when they marched and drove to the city center without resistance. It is the second city to Goma that fell into the rebels in the mineral-rich region in the past few weeks.

The Congolese government has recognized its fall and asked the residents to stay at home “so as not to be targeted by the employees”.

The UN and European countries have warned that the youngest offensive, in which hundreds of thousands of people were forced from their houses, could trigger a wider regional war.

A resident based in Bukavu who wanted to remain anonymous because of their security said the BBC on Sunday that most people were still afraid to leave their houses.

“The children and youth have taken their weapons since yesterday. They shoot all over all directions everywhere, they are looting,” she said.

“The M23 joined this morning and they were celebrated by people, very happy to see them. We do not know if it is because they are afraid or that they did not give any authorities in the city.

“The place where I live the crackle (shots) can still be heard.”

On Friday, the M23 Bukavus conquered the main airport, which is about 30 km north of the city – and then slowly started towards the city, the capital of the province of South -Kivu.

The governor of the province, Jean-Jacques Purusi Sadiki, confirmed to Reuters’ news agency that the fighters were in Bukavu until Sunday morning, and added that Congolese troops had withdrawn to avoid urban battles.

On Saturday, this was a security vacuum in the city with chaotic scenes, including a registered prison break from the central prison.

The UN World Food Program (WFP) said that a warehouse was looted with almost 7,000 tons of food.

The city with around two million people at the southern tip of Lake Kivu borders on Rwanda and is an important transit point for local mineral trading.

His fall is an unprecedented expansion of the territory for the M23 since her recent uprising began at the end of 2021 – and is a blow to the government of President Félix Tshisekedi.

The government’s spokesman, Patrick Muyaya, said Rwanda had the territorial integrity of Dr. Congo violates expansionist ambitions and human rights violations.

The Congolese government accuses Rwanda of having chaos in the region – and having troops on site – so that it can benefit from its natural resources what Kigali denies.

President Tshisekedi wants his Rwandian counterpart Paul Kagame to be exposed to the recent unrest.

However, President Kagame dismissed such threats – and has repeatedly pointed out that Rwanda’s main priority is his security.

He has long been upset about what he sees as the failure of the Congolese authorities to deal with the FLDR Rebel Group of the DR Congo, which he sees as a danger to Rwanda.

The group consists of some members of the ethnic Hutu militia who were accused of participation in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda when around 800,000 people, mainly from the Tutsi ethnic group, were killed over 100 days.

Tulties from the M23 guided by Tusti gathered on Sunday at Place de L’Indépendance in Central Bukavu, where one of his commanders, Bernard Byamungu, was shot to chat with locals and answer their questions in Swahili.

He asked the government troops to “hide in houses” in order to surrender – and accused the declining military of spreading terror by arming local young people who had condemned a looting current.

The African Union (Au), who organized a summit in Ethiopia in Ethiopia this weekend, asked the M23 to disarm.

“We are all very, very concerned about an open regional war,” Reuters quotes the Au adeo peace and security commissioner of the Au.