Sawt Falasteen - Burundi troops deploy in east DRC, as UK pauses most aid

The Rwanda-backed M23 has in recent weeks seized two major cities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), giving the armed group a major foothold in the mineral-rich region since taking up arms again in late 2021.

It is the latest outbreak of violence in an area that has seen some three decades of unrest and war, claiming millions of lives.

"Rwanda may have security concerns but it is unacceptable to resolve these militarily. There can only be a political solution to this conflict," a UK government spokesperson said, adding that the aid would be suspended "until significant progress" was made in reducing the fighting.

M23 fighters took control of South Kivu provincial capital Bukavu just over a week ago, after capturing Goma, the capital of North Kivu and main city in the country's east, late last month.

The group has advanced easily in the region in recent weeks, without any real opposition from the DRC army whose soldiers committed atrocities as they fled, according to residents.

M23 fighters were quickly approaching the town of Uvira which sits on the northwestern tip of Lake Tanganyika, opposite Bujumbura, the capital economic of Burundi.

Burundi fighters were moving north of Uvira to fend off the advance of M23 fighters.

"Since Sunday, we have observed movements of heavily armed Burundian soldiers heading towards Luvungi", some by road from Uvira, others "crossing the Ruizi River" which runs along the border between the DRC and Burundi, a resident of Sange, located halfway between Uvira and Luvungi, explained to AFP by telephone.

Many Wazalendo -- pro-Kinshasa militia -- "are joining them in Luvungi", the resident added under condition of anonymity.

M23 troops are present around the town of Kamanyola around 75 kilometres (47 miles) north of Uvira.

The town "is calm" but "continues to empty of its inhabitants who fear a resumption of clashes", a resident of the town told AFP on condition of anonymity.

South African troops seriously wounded in the conflict in east DRC have returned home for treatment, their military said on Tuesday.

The troops were part of a mission sent by the 16-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC) bloc in 2023 to help Kinshasa quell unrest in the east.

African countries appointed Tuesday a trio of ex-leaders to oversee a push for peace in the region, while an International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor arrived to investigate the upsurge in violence.

"We are extremely worried about recent developments in Congo, we know the situation particularly in the east is acute," ICC prosecutor Karim Khan told reporters on his arrival in the capital Kinshasa.

Two regional African blocs -- the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) -- have come together in recent weeks in an attempt to install a ceasefire.

They said late Monday that ex-Kenya president Uhuru Kenyatta, ex-Ethiopia prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn and ex-Nigeria president Olusegun Obasanjo had been appointed "facilitators" of a new peace process.

The EAC and SADC agreed at a summit on February 8 to merge two separate peace processes -- based in Luanda and Nairobi -- that were operating before the latest escalation of violence.

"The message has to be conveyed very clearly: any armed group, any armed forces, any allies to armed groups or armed forces don't have a blank cheque," ICC prosecutor Khan said.

The statement from the EAC and SADC said their key goals were an "immediate and unconditional ceasefire" as well as humanitarian supplies and securitisation of the airport at Goma.

It said they would hold a ministerial meeting on Friday to "work on the details of the ceasefire".

DRC Prime Minister Judith Suminwa Tuluka said Monday that "more than 7,000" people have been killed in the region since January. The numbers could not be independently verified.

"The security situation in eastern DRC has reached alarming levels," she told the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.

The UN reported at the beginning of February more than 3,000 deaths since January 26 in east DRC around the time of the M23 offensive which saw the group capture Goma.

The UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said Monday that as of February 14 there had been 842 deaths in hospitals in Goma and the outskirts of the city.

burs-er-rbu/keo/cw

N.Awad--SF-PST