Photo credit: CNN
Burundian soldiers deployed to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo spend days shelling civilians, according to Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
AA reports that the Rwandan leader was highlighting Burundi’s military involvement in the conflict in South Kivu province.
However, there was no immediate reaction from Burundi.
Burundi formally deployed its troops to Congo in 2023, ostensibly to help government forces combat the M23 rebel group.
At some point, Burundi’s President Evariste Ndayishimiye defended the deployment. He said the soldiers were deployed to protect Burundi against its insurgents based in Congo.
Kagame said that recent events in Uvira revealed thousands of Burundian soldiers have been deployed to Congo, some in North Kivu’s Goma and Rutshuru localities.
His remarks came a day after the M23 rebels claimed to have seized Uvra, a key commercial hub close to the border with Burundi.
The capture of Uvira led to a major humanitarian crisis, displacing more than 200,000 people who had been forced to flee their homes, according to the UN.
On Wednesday, the Congolese government attributed the violence in Uvira to a “widespread offensive launched in recent days by the Rwandan Defence Forces” along the Kamanyola-Uvira axis, calling it a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire and the commitments made under recent agreements.
Kigali has denied the allegations.
