MASISI-DRC: Close to 2000 Hutus of the Democratic Force for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) forces have already camped in the volcanic mountains of Virunga National Park, plotting an attack on Rwandan territory.

An intelligence network of the renegade Congolese Tutsi rebel General Laurent Nkunda revealed that two FDLR battalions crossed Masisi territory into Rutsuru territory on the Virunga Park on the Congolese side on Wednesday, September 12.

"The Matsakos battalion moved from Buleusa to Rutsuru and the Bahamas battalion has moved from Pinga to Rutsuru too,” Major Freddy Kambale Matsongani said in an exclusive interview with The New Times in Masisi territory on Friday.

However, Maj. Matsongani said the FDLR are still on the DRC side but would soon cross the mountain to the Rwandan side.  

Army Spokesperson Major Jill Rutaremara expressed concern, but failed to add any more comment by press time.

 "They are well equipped and ready to attack any time,” Maj. Matsongani asserted, adding that the battalions have small and big arms like RPGs, PMGs and SMGs.

There is a fresh outbreak of fighting between the Congolese army and fighters loyal to Gen. Nkunda.

Gen. Nkunda insists his insurgency is not about overthrowing Joseph Kabila’s regime, but about holding the government responsible for its failure to deal with the Rwandan Hutu rebels who fled to DR Congo after the 1994 Genocide.

"Instead, Kabila has created alliances with the FDLR to attack Congolese Tutsis, and our point is legitimate,” he said, adding, "We cannot allow these FDLR to continue causing insecurity and killing innocent Tutsi,” Gen Nkunda said.

Denies dealing with Rwanda
Although reports finger-point Rwanda for supporting Nkunda, he has strongly refuted all this, saying his party is a political movement and that is where he gets his support.

He told The New Times at his base in Masisi that when he was a soldier in government, he was mobilising and recruiting soldiers from FRDC. "Some of them were being fed and getting salaries from the government but they had a cause to fight,” the General noted.

 "We are a movement; we have families and friends, and that is how we mobilise for the support of our troops,” he said, adding, "When there is security, the population contributes to the maintenance of our troops.”

About reports of Rwanda’s support, he said, "Those are allegations and observers very well know that we don’t get any support from Rwanda.”

But he went ahead to explain that, "Many people think we get support from Rwanda because Rwanda was our ally when I was in RCD but today I am in CNDP and [the situation is] different.”

The government in Kigali is instead supporting the peace process in Kinshasa because of the presence of RCD but not CNDP. "We are not Kigali allies and we are not supported by Kigali at all.”

Currently Nkunda has 8000 troops.

When the government called for integration, he gave 6000 of his soldiers. But he says he withdrew his troops because the government broke the agreements of the integration.

"But we are still ready to integrate.”

President Joseph Kabila on Thursday announced he wants Nkunda to return to the army or face disarmament by force. "We must establish the authority of the state in the east using all possible means,” Kabila said.

Seated in his tent in Gitchanga town in Masisi listening to the announcement from Kinshasa,

Nkunda reacted by telling reporters, "We have got a ceasefire agreement from the UN; we are observing the ceasefire but we cannot lay down arms.

"We are not surrendering. We are soldiers. We want to serve in the government army and if someone wants to serve as a soldier, you cannot disarm him. We are going to join the government with our arms.”

 Gen. Nkunda exhibited tens of prisoners of war to many reporters who went to interview him. Six of them were FDLR and the rest were government soldiers.

"I am going to hand them over to MONUC tomorrow,” he said on Wednesday night. Last month he said he had handed over 50 prisoners, but MONUC has denied receiving any such people.

Nkunda accuses MONUC for releasing them, saying some of the 50 who were handed over were released. "We have rearrested some of those we handed over.”

Maj. Rutaremara also said Rwanda has not received any prisoners. He added that if there was no official hand-over signing between Nkunda and MONUC, then the truth cannot be clearly established.

Ends