The rebels of the March 23 Movement (M23) withdrew from one of the main cities of the North Kivu province, occupied over the weekend, media correspondents refer from east DR-Congo confirming the announcement made yesterday.
Based on the reports, the rebels withdrew around 5km from the city to the south-east, in direction of Bunagana and the border with Uganda. Rutshuru is only 30km from Goma, the provincial capital.
An M23 commander Colonel Sultani Makenga had stated that his men had allowed the entry in the city of soldiers and United Nations peacekeepers to show Kinshasa their will to negotiate. “The government must decide if it wants peace and an end to the fighting”, added Makenga. The rebels maintain control of Bunangana, a strategic area for mineral trade in the resource rich east.
The fighting resumed in North Kivu in April. Until 2009, the majority of the M23 fighters were part of the National Congress for the Defence of the People, another rebel group suspected of being backed by the Rwandan government. [VG/BO]
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