MSF warns that the situation in the area is “very unstable” and confirms “thousands” of refugees in its facilities
Rwanda supports a negotiated solution between the DRC and the group and maintains that “it cannot be that everything continues as usual”
Jan. 10 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The rebel group March 23 Movement (M23) has once again taken control of the city of Masisi (or Masisi-center), capital of the territory of the same name in the province of North Kivu, in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). , shortly after the Army recovered the town, within the framework of the fighting of recent days in the area.
The spokesperson for the Congolese Armed Forces, Sylvain Ekenge, has confirmed that the M23 once again has the city in its hands and has argued that “the war always progresses in fits and starts”, in apparent reference to the exchange of blows in Masisi during the last week. .
“We may lose a battle, but the final victory will be Congolese, I assure you,” he concluded, as reported by the Congolese radio station Radio Okapi, after an offensive by the M23 against Masisi from its surroundings, where they had retreated after the recent entry into the city of the military and allied militias.
The M23 had already taken Masisi during the day on Sunday, within the framework of the advances obtained in recent months in North Kivu. The group’s main objective is the provincial capital, Goma, where tens of thousands of people have moved fleeing the fighting.
The non-governmental organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned on Thursday that the humanitarian and security situation in the Masisi territory is “very unstable” and stated that “thousands” of people went to the Masisi General Hospital and the base of the NGO seeking refuge.
“It is difficult to calculate their exact number, but I would say that more than 10,000 people are still sheltered there, the vast majority women and children,” said MSF project coordinator in Masisi, Romain Briey. “We are starting to be worried because the sanitation facilities are not enough to cover their basic needs,” he added.
“The latrines are starting to overflow, and we are doing everything possible to respond to this situation. But the serious lack of humanitarian actors in the area is making things difficult,” he warned. MSF treated more than 75 wounded people at the site between January 2 and 9.
In this sense, Briey asserted that “”in addition to treating the injured and continuing to provide regular care, our teams try to support the families sheltered in the facilities by guaranteeing access to drinking water and medical care.” “But there will soon be a lack of food if the situation continues,” he warned.
The security situation is also affecting MSF’s ability to refer critically ill patients to Goma and deploy teams to other parts of the Masisi territory, making it impossible to assess humanitarian needs in other areas of North Kivu.
KAGAME REITERATES ITS SUPPORT FOR A NEGOTIATED SOLUTION
In this context, the Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, has appealed to continue diplomatic efforts to achieve a negotiated solution to the conflict, although he has clarified that “it cannot be that everything continues as usual”, given the differences between Kigali and Kinshasa over the situation and the exchange of accusations between Rwanda and the DRC.
Thus, he has affirmed that the ups and downs of recent months in the efforts to achieve a solution should not deter the parties from continuing with these efforts. “We cannot live with it and give up,” he maintained, as reported by the Rwandan newspaper ‘The New Times’.
“Efforts must continue and find a solution to this problem,” he reiterated, while asking to change the approach. “We cannot continue as before, giving importance to the process over the results. We look for results, not a process, but we have to do the right thing,” he argued.
In this sense, he has called for “asking the right questions and finding the right answers” after the failed summit in Angola in December, in which Kagame canceled his participation at the last minute due to the refusal of his counterpart, Félix Tshisekedi, to initiate a “direct dialogue” with the M23 rebels.
“The solution derives from an internal political process (in DRC) for a dialogue. If you want a solution, the type of process and its quality explains it. People can see what you are doing and understand that you really want a solution,” has maintained, before emphasizing that the failure of the summit in Luanda derived from “a rejection on the part of the DRC, not Rwanda.”
Kagame has also reiterated his demand for “a response” to the situation of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) group, founded and made up mainly of Hutus responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. “We must not avoid this and go around the problem, we must find a solution,” he stressed.
The latest fighting broke out despite the fragile truce mediated in August by Angola between the parties, amid accusations crossed between the Army and the M23 about violations of the pact and harsh criticism from Kinshasa against Kigali for its support for the armed group and even the deployment of the military in its territory.
The M23 is a rebel group made up mainly of Congolese Tutsis that launched a new offensive at the end of 2022, after the conflict between 2012 and 2013, which ended with a peace agreement. For its part, Rwanda accuses the DRC of repressing Congolese Tutsis with the support of armed groups such as the FDLR and other local militias.
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