In brief
The Congolese military has accused Rwanda of staging a video to falsify the capture of FDLR rebels, amid heightened conflict in eastern DR Congo led by Rwandan-backed M23 fighters, further complicating the humanitarian crisis.
The army of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has leveled accusations against Rwanda, claiming that the latter fabricated a video depicting the capture of supposed rebels connected to the Rwandan genocide. This allegation follows reports from M23 rebels, who are supported by Rwanda and have been making territorial gains in eastern DRC since January, asserting that they captured members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a militia composed of ethnic Hutus involved in the 1994 genocide against Tutsis.The DRC military dismissed a video, which allegedly shows the handover of 20 FDLR members at a border crossing, as "faked." In its statement, the Congolese army claimed that Rwanda sourced outdated FDLR prisoners, dressed them in new military attire, and presented the scenario as a recent capture in Goma, aiming to tarnish the DRC's military reputation. The presence of FDLR fighters in eastern DRC has historically been used by Rwanda to justify its support for the M23 militia. Although Rwanda has previously denied backing M23, it argues that its military intervention is warranted due to threats posed by FDLR remnants in the region. United Nations experts have indicated that 3,000 to 4,000 Rwandan troops may be stationed in eastern Congo, while also reporting that the DRC military had allegedly employed various armed factions, including FDLR, as proxies against the M23.The 1994 Rwandan genocide resulted in the deaths of around 800,000 individuals within a span of 100 days. Following the turmoil, many Hutu militants, including those from FDLR, fled to the present-day DRC. Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who led the Tutsi forces that ended the massacre over three decades ago, continues to perceive these "genocidal militias" as a grave threat.As tensions rise, recent violence has unfolded in Bukavu, the DRC's second-largest city, where gunfire erupted during a rally of rebel leaders. The DRC President Félix Tshisekedi blamed the unrest on a "foreign army" active in the region, a sentiment echoed amid calls for a ceasefire from both the African Union and the UN. This ongoing conflict has already displaced about 500,000 individuals, further exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in eastern DRC.
