‘We are waging an existential war’: M23’s Bertrand Bisimwa on DRC conflict

Leader of the M23 group says its rebellion in eastern DR Congo is a ‘defensive’ one, hopes for dialogue with Kinshasa.

For three years, the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been embroiled in an armed conflict between the army and the M23 rebel group that has killed hundreds of people and displaced nearly two million.

M23 was first formed after a mutiny within the Congolese national army (FARDC) in 2012. Though the initial rebellion was crushed, the group took up arms against the army and allied “Wazalendo” armed groups again in 2022, and has since seized swaths of territory in North Kivu province.

M23 says it is defending the interests of minority Congolese Tutsi, many of whom say they suffer discrimination and exclusion in DRC for their ethnic links to Rwanda’s Tutsi community.

Kinshasa sees M23 as the greatest security threat it currently faces, with regional tensions escalating as bodies including the United Nations accuse Rwanda of supporting M23 with troops and weapons, fuelling the rebellion – something Rwanda denies.

Despite attempts at ceasefires and negotiations – including the 2022 Nairobi peace process and recent mediation efforts by Angola – fighting has continued. In Lubero, M23 advanced several dozen kilometres in just a few days in December.