DR CONGO LATEST NEWS

Fears of a war in the Great Lakes region heightened after Kinshasa accused Rwanda of a drone attack at the Goma airport on Friday, February 16th 2024. Residents reported hearing ‘two loud explosions’ at around 2 AM. While no military aircraft were damaged, a civilian plane was hit. Rwanda did not immediately respond to the allegations.

Rwanda has been accused of deploying sophisticated mobile surface-to-air missiles during the attack, thus endangering civilian lives. Nineteen civilians and two South African soldiers have recently died in bombings attributed to the M23.

Thousands of people have fled from neighbouring towns towards Goma in the latest clashes between Congolese troops and the M23.

Continued…..The rebel group has reportedly cut off all routes to and from the city except for a single roadway leading to Rwanda. The town of Sake, just 20 km (12 miles) from Goma, has seen intense fighting in the last ten days.

With over seven million Congolese being displaced by the ongoing battles, aid groups are warning of a dire humanitarian situation as more refugees stream into overstretched camps.

President Felix Tshisekedi, who recently won a disputed second term in office, vowed to invade Rwanda if the neighbouring country did not cease meddling in the restive eastern DRC. However, Kigali denies supporting the M23.

‘FREE CONGO!’ PROTESTS ERUPT IN PARIS

Hundreds of protesters hit Parisian streets on 17 February, heading toward the Rwandan embassy to denounce the African state’s alleged complicity in the resource extraction and violence occurring in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This is just one in many recent actions Congolese people have taken calling for the liberation of their country.

The Congo has been drained and pillaged for multiple generations to fuel the Global North’s technological advancements. Belgium built some of its initial wealth and standing as an industrialised state by plundering Congolese ivory and rubber in the 19th century and early 20th century. The native Congolese were subjected to brutality, such as amputations, if they could not fulfil rubber quotas. That international scandal forced the colonial system to rebrand itself and find less apparent ways to perpetuate the same violence.

Continued…..Since the mid-20th century, colonial rule has given way to neo-colonialism. The violence required to extract resources for the global capitalist economy has created a refugee crisis, with about 7 million Congolese internally displaced. Children have been documented digging for minerals, such as cobalt, so industrialised countries can reap profit. Meanwhile, neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda are accused of playing middlemen that help the West secure access to Congolese resources.

Until the DRC is free, we will continue to fight, mobilise and organise wherever we may be.

How do you see best to defend Africa against resource extraction that doesn’t benefit the people? Let us know in the comments.

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ACTIVISTS FOR CONGO INTERRUPT 37TH AU SUMMIT

Protesters interrupted proceedings at the 37th African Union (AU) Summit on 18 February in Addis Ababa. They held placards calling for ending the decades-long conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

This action marks a spirited campaign that has escalated in recent weeks. In the DRC, Congolese have taken to the streets and ripped foreign flags off buildings to condemn Western complicity. During the recent Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Ivory Coast, DRC players grabbed the world’s attention through silent protests at matches and social media posts.

Continued…..The AU was founded on the ideals of leaders like Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah. But the continental body has been a toothless bulldog in the face of Africa’s myriad of crises. In the eastern DRC, 6 million have been killed and close to 7 million internally displaced since the mid-1990s.

While the body has been silent on foreign entities looting the continent, it has quickly taken action against countries fighting to regain their sovereignty. The AU suspended Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger after each country overthrew French-backed governments and severed links with France. Meanwhile, the AU has yet to act against constitutional coups in Ivory Coast and Senegal.

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DR CONGO FLOODS WREAK HAVOC

The worst floods to hit the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 60 years have damaged the homes of about 500,000 people and killed 221. Many areas in 16 out of the country’s 26 provinces are still under water two months after torrential rains in late December made the Congo River overflow. Authorities are concerned about the risk of malaria and typhoid in makeshift camps housing thousands of refugees.

Experts say the country’s rapid deforestation is to blame for the floods. According to Global Forest Watch, the second-highest tree-cover loss in 2022 occurred in the DRC. Activities like illegal logging and Western-backed mineral extraction have caused some deforestation. Loss of forest canopy and root systems leads to more rainwater flowing into rivers.

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THE WORLD WAS SILENT WHEN WE DIED

What you see in this clip is happening right now - another mass displacement of people in eastern DRC. Thousands of people have fled their homes in Goma - capital of the North Kivu Province - and in nearby towns and settlements, as M23 rebel advances bring genocidal violence ever closer.

Yet the global media is silent, as are world leaders. Why don’t African lives matter to them?

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Kenyan President William Ruto has called on Africa to harness green energy to create opportunities for Africans. On 18 February at the African Union Commission headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ruto said banking on green industrialisation would create enough jobs so African youths wouldn't have to migrate to the West to seek a better life.

While calling for more jobs in Africa, Ruto's numerous trips abroad have involved lobbying for hundreds of thousands of jobs in Germany, Saudi Arabia and Poland, to name a few. The Council of Governors, touted as a nonpartisan body that represents 47 counties, recently lamented Kenya's brain drain, saying only 14 doctors are available to treat every 10,000 Kenyans. Yet, barely a week ago, Labour and Social Protection Secretary Florence Bore was in Germany to 'follow up on job opportunities [Ruto] initiated and discussed.'

Continued…..Is Ruto's statement about keeping African youth on the continent in sync with his policy to send well-educated Kenyans abroad? Has he had a change of heart or is it something else? Let us know what you think.

BRAZIL’S PRESIDENT COMPARES ISRAELI ATROCITIES IN GAZA TO THE HOLOCAUST

At the 37th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia this weekend, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva likened Israel’s assault on the Gaza strip to Adolf Hitler’s extermination campaign against the Jews.

Lula called Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza, which has killed nearly 29,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, unprecedented. He went on to compare the systematic attacks upon the Palestinian civilian population to the Jewish Holocaust.

Taken aback by the comments, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the Brazilian head of state of “trivializing the Holocaust and trying to harm the Jewish people and Israel’s right to defend itself.”

Continued…..Israel’s Foreign Ministry summoned Brazil’s ambassador to the country to express an official reprimand. Shortly thereafter, Brazil’s Foreign Minister, Mauro Vieira, spoke personally with Daniel Zonshine, the Israeli ambassador to his country. On Monday night, in a private meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Vieira expressed his government’s discomfort amid the diplomatic row, referring to statements made by Netanyahu as “unacceptable.”

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ECOWAS WANTS SAHELIAN TRIO BACK IN BLOC 😂

On February 8th, 2024, the Economic Community of West African States - ECOWAS - convened in Abuja to discuss the decision of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger to quit the regional bloc. The revolutionary trio have formed their own alliance, known as the Alliance of Sahel States - or AES. ECOWAS representatives made it clear they regretted the triple departure and sought reconciliation.

But the AES states show no signs of a change of heart. As Burkina Faso’s prime minister put it, “Our withdrawal from ECOWAS is not directed against anyone, against any institution, against any state. It aims to assume our sovereignty and ensure the security and prosperity of the populations of our area. However, we will be able to respond to provocations wherever they come from.”

Continued…..Niger - which was threatened with war by ECOWAS if it did not undo its anti-imperialist coup - has also taken additional measures to defend itself from neighbouring member states. For example, it’s closed its airspace to flights from Nigeria next door. Niamey has also accused Benin’s president, Patrice Talon, of supporting sanctions against Niger only to avoid criticisms from ECOWAS allies over seeking an illegal third term.

What do you make of AES efforts to stand up against ECOWAS?

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The US State Department has ‘strongly’ condemned escalating violence in the restive eastern DR Congo, blaming the M23 rebel group, which it says is backed by Rwanda.

But some might accuse Washington of merely feigning concern - or even of attempting to pull the wool over the world’s eyes regarding its own destructive role in the tragic history of the mineral-rich country.

Washington’s main interest in the Congo began during the Second World War when it used the purest known uranium ore from the Shinkolobwe mine to make the first-ever atomic bomb. Ore from the mine was later used in the manufacture of nuclear weapons.

Continued…..In 1961, the CIA orchestrated the killing of visionary Pan-Africanist leader Patrice Lumumba, and then propped up murderous dictator Joseph Mobutu, who enabled Western interests to loot much of the Congo’s wealth until his ouster in 1997.

US tech giants such as Apple, Google, Dell, Microsoft and Tesla are accused of profiting from child labour, as they rely on battery-grade cobalt mined in the DRC.

Washington also allegedly uses Rwanda and Uganda as conduits for arms shipments to militia groups in the DRC. Is it a coincidence that the leaders of both countries are still around 25 years after US President Bill Clinton labelled them a ‘new breed of African leaders’?

What do you think the US is really ‘concerned’ about?

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ISRAEL FAILS TO EXPEL LAWMAKER OVER SA GENOCIDE CASE

On Monday, February 19, Israel’s supreme state body, the Knesset, narrowly failed to expel left-wing member, Ofer Cassif, for his support over South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the ICJ. The motion was supported by 85 Knesset members, 5 short of the two-thirds majority of 90 needed for expulsion.

Eleven lawmakers voted against expulsion and 24 abstained, including leading centrist politicians Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz and significant portions of their respective parties, Yesh Atid and National Unity.

Continued…..Cassif faced expulsion from the Knesset after signing an open letter supporting South Africa’s charge at the ICJ that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza. Israel has rejected the accusation. Shortly after the vote, he wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that “the voice against the war, the voice against the carnage of innocent civilians, the voice for the immediate release of the hostages, the voice for peace and justice will not be silenced. My voice will not be silenced!”

Israel’s assault on the Gaza strip has killed almost 30,000 Palestinians in operations it says are aimed at rooting out H*m*s militants. However, most of the victims have been women and children. The ongoing attacks have displaced 1.9 million people and destroyed over 70% of homes in the region.

Tel Aviv has faced global condemnation for the high death toll, and even its allies, particularly the United States, have urged restraint. The ICJ has said it’s ‘plausible’ Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered it not to take actions that violate the Genocide Convention. However, the court did not call for a cease-fire as many had hoped.

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US AND FRENCH FLAGS SET AFLAME AGAIN IN DRC

Congolese people have had enough of being trampled on and dominated by Western neo-colonial powers! Yet again they’ve taken to the streets to burn the American and French flags which represent imperialist violence and destruction. In this video the protesters also denounce Paul Kagame, president of neighbouring Rwanda who is accused of helping Western powers illegally access Congolese resources by fueling war in Eastern Congo.

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