The Luanda summit on the security crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has called for all local and foreign armed groups to put down their weapons. At the end of the summit, it has been resolved that the M23 rebels who are fighting the Congolese army in North Kivu province should withdraw from occupied territories by Friday November 25, 2022.
If the M23 refuses to withdraw, the leaders said they would authorise the use of force to compel the group to comply. News reports have it that three foreign armed groups, the FDLR from Rwanda, RED-Tabara from Burundi, and the ADF from Uganda, were called on to cease hostilities.
The summit, which took place in the Angolan capital, Luanda on Wednesday, November 23, 2022, was attended by heads of states. Among them were, President João Lourenço, the host; Felix Tshisekedi of DR Congo; Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi; Rwanda's Minister of Foreign Affairs Vincent Biruta, who represented President Paul Kagame; and former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is the facilitator of the East African Community-led peace process.
The summit was convened to deliberate on security in the eastern Congolese provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu, and Ituri, where over 120 armed groups operate.
A communique released after the leaders' consultation expressed their concern about "the persistence of negative and terrorist forces in the eastern DRC. Which constitutes a threat to peace, security, and stability in the sub-region".
This morning, Kenya is ready to commit 900 soldiers to compel the armed groups to cease fire.
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: Angola Summit Calls on M23 Rebels to Withdraw from Positions in DR Congo or be Forced Out){kind=link}
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