On the eve of the ceasefire, as requested by President Macron and other leaders recently, the unruly FARDC and its allies launched full-scale offensives on M23 positions.
The FARDC cowards and their coalition composed of FDLR, Mai-Mai, ACPLS, PARECO, and Wagner group attacked positions of M23 in the areas of Mubambiro, prompting the latter to retaliate and push them up to territories under the control of regional forces (EACRF). The fighting is still ongoing as of now.
M23 through its spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka had announced on Sunday, shortly after President Emmanuel Macron’s visit that they stop fighting to give chances to dialogues with President Felix Tshisekedi. In the same order, M23 fighters had also thought to adhere to existing agreements of surrendering some of their seized territories to regional forces.
This a reminder that since the Luanda Road Map, Nairobi Summit, and numerous meetings held by regional Heads of State and their army chiefs, M23 had relinquished some of its territories like some parts in Rumangabo and Kibumba.
While M23 continues to make it known that it is not interested in fightings but rather open to all channels that can lead to peace, Tshisekedi’s unprofessional forces do not care at all. They keep provoking M23. It’s too bad that the more they attack, the more they get embarrassed on the battlefield. M23 has been giving them a run for their lives.
As of now, M23 remains in its positions in all three axes surrounding Goma. Should FARDC and its allies continue to misbehave, they give M23 no other option but to proceed and seize the city of Goma on the way down to Bukavu. Let’s watch this space.