Zitat:Bewaffneter Überfall auf Konvoi

Italiens Botschafter im Kongo getötet

Im Kongo haben bewaffnete Angreifer einen Konvoi überfallen und dabei den italienischen Botschafter und zwei Begleiter getötet. Das kongolesische Innenministerium machte Hutu-Rebellen für die Tat verantwortlich.

Italiens Botschafter im Kongo ist bei einem bewaffneten Angriff auf einen Konvoi des Welternährungsprogramms getötet worden. Luca Attanasio erlag kurz nach dem Überfall seinen schweren Verletzungen, erklärte der zuständige Gouverneur der Region Nord-Kivu, Carly Nzanzu Kasivita. [...] Nach Angaben eines Armeesprechers wurden bei dem Angriff noch zwei weitere Menschen getötet. Es soll sich dabei um den Fahrer und den Leibwächter des Botschafters handeln.

Zitat:Over the last few months, the Congolese branch of the Islamic State’s Central African Province (ISCAP), known locally as the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), has sustained a large-scale offensive in southern Ituri Province. This marks a significant shift from its normal areas of operation in the neighboring Beni territory of North Kivu province.

Based on numbers from the Kivu Security Tracker (KST), the ADF has been responsible for 66 attacks in southern Ituri which have left at least 207 people dead since June 1. Additionally, the group kidnapped at least another 171 people during these raids. The strikes have targeted both civilians and uniformed members of the Congolese security forces, or FARDC.

These numbers account for nearly 60% of all ADF operations in the last three months. In contrast, ADF’s Ituri operations only accounted for just 33% of its overall activity between March (when the KST began tracking incidents in Ituri) and May.

These numbers represent an 82% increase in Ituri-based activity since June 1.

Zitat:OSTAFRIKA

Ruanda und DR Kongo: Deeskalation in brenzligem Rebellen-Konflikt?

Beobachter schlossen zuletzt sogar einen Krieg der beiden Nachbarn nicht aus. Jetzt wollen Ruanda und Kongo aufeinander zugehen. Doch dabei haben sie die Rechnung ohne die Rebellen der M23 gemacht.

Die meisten politischen Vereinbarungen sind nicht für die Ewigkeit - doch die Lebensdauer des allerersten Ziels der sogenannten Roadmap war dramatisch kurz. Unter angolanischer Vermittlung hatten die Präsidenten der Demokratischen Republik Kongo und Ruandas, Felix Tshisekedi und Paul Kagame, Schritte zur Verbesserung ihrer Beziehungen beschlossen.

In der sechs Punkte umfassenden Vereinbarung bekannten sich beide Seiten zu einem "sofortigen Rückzug der M23". Doch die Rebellengruppe setzte ein Zeichen, dass nicht über ihren Kopf hinweg entschieden werden kann und verübte neue Angriffe. [...] Die M23 galten lange als Geist der Vergangenheit: 2012 hatten ihre Kämpfer die an Ruanda grenzende Millionenstadt Goma am Kivusee eingenommen. Blauhelm-Soldaten der UN-Truppe MONUSCO drängten sie damals zurück; ein Jahr später verschwand die M23 von der Bildfläche. Nach ersten Lebenszeichen Ende 2021 kam es in den vergangenen Monaten wieder zu Angriffen; unter anderem übernahm die M23 die Kontrolle über mehrere Dörfer im kongolesischen Grenzgebiet. [...]

Die Rückkehr der M23 trug dann auch zu einer Verschlechterung der kongolesisch-ruandischen Beziehungen bei. Wieder wirft Kongo Ruanda vor, die Rebellen zu unterstützen, was aus Kigali jedoch abgestritten wird. Die Spannungen zwischen beiden Ländern waren in den vergangenen Monaten so groß geworden, dass selbst ein direkter Krieg in den Bereich des Möglichen gerückt war: Im Februar beklagte Kagame die Aktivitäten einer Hutu-Miliz im Ostkongo und drohte vor dem versammelten Parlament mit einem Militäreinsatz "mit oder ohne Zustimmung" aus Kinshasa. Die kongolesische Regierung wiederum bezichtigte Ruanda, Raketen über die Grenze geschossen zu haben. [...]

Kurzfristig soll eine neue militärische Intervention die Lage in der Region stabilisieren: Die Ostafrikanische Gemeinschaft (EAC) hatte im sogenannten Nairobi-Prozess die Gründung einer Eingreiftruppe unter Führung Kenias beschlossen. Zwischenzeitlich hatten sich darüber die Fronten weiter verhärtet, als Kinshasa die Mitwirkung ruandischer Truppen blockierte - inzwischen gab Ruanda den Widerstand gegen die Ausgrenzung seiner Armee auf. [...] Auch sollen Uganda und Ruanda Profite mit dem Export von Gold, Coltan und anderen Rohstoffen machen, die zuvor illegal über die Grenze geschafft wurden.

Zitat:Rwanda backing M23 rebels in DRC: UN experts

A UN group of experts finds ‘solid evidence’ that Kigali is supporting M23 fighters despite repeated denials.

Rwandan troops attacked soldiers inside DR Congo and aided the M23 rebel group with weapons and support, a United Nations group of experts said, citing “solid evidence” despite reiterated denials by Kigali. [...] Kigali repeatedly denied supporting M23 and the armed group maintains it does not receive Rwandan support. [...]

A 131-page report by United Nations Security Council experts found Rwanda launched military interventions inside Congolese territory since at least November 2021, providing “troop reinforcements” for specific M23 operations, “in particular when these aimed at seizing strategic towns and areas”. [...] An estimated 1,000 Rwandan troops also cut the main highway leading to the provincial capital Goma, an important commercial hub on the Rwandan border, and attacked Congolese positions, it said.

“On repeated occasions, aerial imagery showed large columns of up to 500 armed men in the vicinity of the DRC, Rwandan and Ugandan borders, moving in a very organized manner,” the expert group said.

Zitat:UN 'Outraged' at Peacekeepers' Aggression in DR Congo

The U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo has arrested U.N. peacekeeping troops suspected of having opened fire at a Ugandan border post, killing at least two people and injuring 15 others. It's the latest violent incident involving the U.N.'s mission which has been facing violent protests.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "outraged, saddened and dismayed" by the deaths and demanded accountability.

Zitat:Death toll reaches 36 in eastern DRC as protesters turn on UN peacekeepers [...]

Fears of a new wave of violence in the restive east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo are growing after weeks of deadly protests against UN peacekeepers and rising regional tensions.

Thirty-six people, including four UN peacekeepers, have died in the past two weeks as hundreds of protesters vandalised and set fire to UN buildings in several cities in eastern frontier provinces. Though there have been similar waves of protests before, few have caused so many casualties. With elections due next year, analysts say political actors are fuelling unrest. [...]

Civilians in eastern DRC have accused Monusco, which has been active for more than a decade, of failing to protect them from the militia violence that has long plagued the region but which has intensified in recent months. The protesters called for the immediate withdrawal of the force.

Zitat:Rwanda-DR Congo tension: Shooting of plane an ‘act of war’

DR Congo has declared Rwanda's shooting of one of its fighter jets an "act of war", amid mounting tensions. Rwanda's government said it took "defensive measures" against a plane that had violated its airspace - a claim denied by DR Congo. Although the plane landed safely, this is a major escalation following months of conflict in DR Congo, which has forced 400,000 people from their homes.

DR Congo, the US and UN experts accuse Rwanda of backing the M23 rebel group. Rwanda has denied this and blames the Congolese government for the unrest in mineral-rich eastern DR Congo. In the 1990s, Rwanda twice sent troops into its much larger neighbour, sparking a huge conflict involving at least nine countries that led to the death of millions of people.

Zitat:UN troops kill eight civilians in DRC convoy attack: Governor

Convoy was firing ‘warning shots’ which also wounded 28 people in North Kivu province, UN mission MONUSCO says. [...] The UN convoy was returning from a resupply mission north of Goma, the provincial capital, when assailants set four trucks on fire, the UN mission in the country, MONUSCO, said on Wednesday.

The attack took place at Kanyaruchinya, where thousands of displaced people live. MONUSCO had said three people died when the peacekeepers, accompanied by Congolese soldiers, “tried to protect the convoy”. “The MONUSCO soldiers in charge of security fired warning shots, which unfortunately caused the death of eight of our compatriots among the displaced and 28 wounded,” Lieutenant-General Constant Ndima, the governor’s spokesman, said on Wednesday. He said an investigation would be carried out.

Zitat:DR Congo Army Thwarts Coup Attempt Amid Political Crisis

The military of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) announced that its armed forces had prevented a violent attempt to overthrow the government. This came after an armed attack on the residence of Congo's Economy Minister Vital Kamerhe, in which three people were killed, reports Deutsche Welle.

The army spokesman, General Sylvain Ekenge, said that the coup attempt involved both foreigners and Congolese and that the leader of the plot had been "put out of action," without specifying if they were killed or detained.

The United States Embassy issued a security alert warning of "ongoing activity by DRC security elements" and reports of gunfire near the presidential palace. Videos on social media showed men in military clothing brandishing flags of the former Zaire at the palace.

The incident occurred amid a crisis within President Felix Tshisekedi's ruling party over the election of the next speaker of parliament, and self-exiled opposition leader Christian Malanga threatened Tshisekedi in a video, intensifying the crisis.

(29.05.2024, 14:53)Schneemann schrieb: Anscheinend gab es einen Putschversuch im Kongo. Interessant hierbei ist, dass offenbar auch ausländische Personen daran beteiligt waren, möglicherweise mit Verbindungen in die USA. ,,,,

Schneemann

Zitat: Seit Jahrzehnten träumen Investoren und Ingenieure davon, am Fluss Kongo den grössten Staudamm der Welt zu bauen. Nun nehmen sie einen neuen Anlauf
Der Grand-Inga-Damm in Kongo-Kinshasa könnte doppelt so viel Strom produzieren wie der Drei-Schluchten-Damm in China. Doch seit bald einem Jahrhundert bleibt das Projekt eine Phantasie.
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