Seven months after UN resolution, peace in eastern Congo remains elusive

Seven months after the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2773, urging the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda to end hostilities, the UN’s top envoy in Congo says peace remains “mostly a promise.”

Despite diplomatic breakthroughs including peace agreements signed in Washington between the DRC and Rwanda in June, and a July declaration of ceasefire with M23 rebels in Qatar, violence continues to escalate on the ground.

“The key provisions of Resolution 2773 remain largely unimplemented,” said Bintou Keita, UN Special Representative for the DRC and head of MONUSCO. “Despite the Council’s requests, the AFC and M23 have continued to pursue a logic of territorial expansion and consolidation.”

Tensions between DRC and Rwanda remain high, with both countries trading accusations at the UN. Rwanda’s Permanent Representative, Karoli Martin Ngoga, claimed that the DRC is collaborating with the FDLR, a rebel group accused of atrocities. “FDLR is assisted by the DRC government,” he said. “It is there. It is known. It is in UN reports.”

In response, DRC’s UN ambassador, Zenon Ngay Mukongo, accused Rwanda of invasion and alleged ethnic cleansing. “This country invaded the territory of the DRC. They kill every day,” he said. “This morning in Bukavu, hundreds of young men were taken to an undisclosed location, probably with the goal of ethnic cleansing.”

Violence continues to devastate eastern Congo. NGOs have reported summary executions, gang rapes, and kidnappings. A UN investigation in September found that all parties may have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity.