Bertrand Bisimwa, the president of the M23 rebel group in eastern DR Congo, has accused government forces of taking over positions ceded to the East African Community (EAC) regional force as a buffer zone. The government forces and their allied militias, like FDLR, Nyatura and Mai Mai, occupied the locality of Mushaki on Saturday, May 13, according to Bisimwa. ALSO READ: EAC troops failed, says DR Congo's foreign minister “This is a serious violation of the spirit and the letter of the EAC resolutions,” he said in a tweet, referring to peace talks mediated by the regional bloc. “The people of Mushaki, who have been fleeing the abuses committed against them by government coalition forces for several days, are wandering in the countryside without assistance or protection. It is imperative that the Kinshasa regime respect its own commitments,” Bisimwa said. ALSO READ: M23 rebels accuse DR Congo army of abuses The EAC regional force occupies some of the positions vacated by the M23 rebels as part of the withdrawal agreed in November 2022 in Luanda, the capital of Angola. Mushaki is supposed to be under the control of the Burundian contingent of the regional force. Kinshasa government accuses the regional force of siding with the rebels, which has led to disagreements that may see the force exit in June. ALSO READ: DR Congo: EAC force repulses attack in Kibumba Earlier in May, the rebels accused the government coalition of killing hundreds of cows belonging to Congolese Tutsi herders in North Kivu province. The Ugandan contingent of the EAC regional force confirmed on May 11 that FDLR elements were responsible for the cattle shooting, which was caught on camera. The M23 also said the government forces were responsible for killing 17 people in Kizimba, in Masisi territory. The UN summit on DR Congo held in Burundi on May 6 called for an independent investigation into the Kizimba massacres.
