M23 Rebels in DRC Congo welcome Ruto’s move to send KDF ‘for field battle’
M23 Rebels in DRC Congo welcome Ruto’s move to deploy KDF-Kenya Defense Forces in the war-torn country.
The M23 Movement, an armed organization in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, applauded President William Ruto’s choice to send KDF troops to the country’s destabilized east.
Political spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka said that the KDF’s peacekeeping operation will help to resolve the violence between the rebels and the DRC forces in a statement distributed to media outlets on Friday, November 4.
Additionally, M23 blamed Felix Tshisekedi, the president of the DRC, for the unrest in the region.
“The M23 expresses its gratitude yet again to the Republic of Kenya and its people for the recent DRC peace process held in Nairobi,” read the statement in part.
“Those who have the habit and profession of (killing civilians) daily are the allies of the DRC government in the war against the M23 Movement as proven in the latest published Human Rights Watch Report,” the statement added.
President William Ruto announced on Wednesday the deployment of troops to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in a joint regional operation against a rebel offensive.
Ruto said that by sending troops, Kenya was sending a signal to the world of Kenya’s commitment to fulfilling its obligations by contributing to the achievement and maintenance of peace and stability in the East African region.
Kenya will command the force, including soldiers from Burundi, Uganda and South Sudan after leaders of the East African Community (EAC) agreed to establish a joint force to help restore security in DRC.
Human Rights Watch had accused M23 Movement of summarily killing 29 residents in the last five months, a claim that the militia group denied arguing that it never targeted civilian populations.
The statement by M23 rebels came hours after Kenyan MPs raised questions on the legality of the decision by the president to deploy troops to DRC without parliamentary approval.
Tiaty Constituency Member of Parliament, William Kamket, Thursday, November 3, rose on the point of order questioning the sequence of events that led to KDF’s deployment.
Kamket indicated that the letter from Defence Cabinet Secretary, Aden Duale, arrived in Parliament on Wednesday afternoon, November 2, while President Ruto commissioned the troops to DRC the day before.
He cited Article 240 (8) of the Kenyan Constitution, which requires the National Security Council to deploy troops outside Kenya for peace support operations with the approval of the National Assembly.
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