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Nearly 300 Kenyan soldiers from this force, whose mandate ends on December 8, had already left Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, last Sunday. These forces were deployed in the east of the DRC. Their renewal of deployment was refused by Kinshasa, deeming it ineffective
The withdrawal of the East African force (EAC-RF) continued with the departure from Goma of some 250 South Sudanese soldiers. Nearly 300 Kenyan soldiers from this force, whose mandate ends on December 8, had already left Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, last Sunday. These forces were deployed in the east of the DRC. Their renewal of deployment was refused by Kinshasa, deeming it ineffective,
In addition to Kenyan and South Sudanese soldiers, the EAC-RF also includes Ugandan and Burundian soldiers. The Ugandans and Burundians should also leave in the coming weeks. The withdrawal will take place for a month, i.e. until January 7. she added.
Ugandan and Burundian troops are also present in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo under bilateral agreements with Kinshasa. EAC-RF soldiers began arriving in Goma in November 2022, about a year after the resurgence in North Kivu of the M23 rebellion ( “March 23 Movement” ) which, with the support of Rwanda according to numerous sources, has taken over large parts of the province. The Congolese authorities then invited the EAC to deploy its force to liberate areas conquered by the rebels.
To replace it, Kinshasa is counting in particular on troops from the Southern African Community (SADC). A spokesperson for Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi mentioned the date of December 10 for the start of their deployment, which has not been confirmed at this stage by the SADC or by potential contributing countries.
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The departure of the EAC-RF comes as fighting continues between the M23 and the Congolese army supported by so-called “patriotic” militiamen. A UN mission, MONUSCO, formerly MONUC, has been present in the DRC since 1999. But it is also accused of ineffectiveness and Kinshasa is asking for its departure, “orderly” but “accelerated” , from January 2024.
