President Felix Tshisekedi of DRC, on Monday made a hushed flight to neighbouring Burundi for a crisis meeting with his counterpart Gen.Evariste Ndayishimiye.
The two countries have a limitless bilateral military cooperation agreement to fight the AFC/M23 rebels currently controlling North and large part of South Kivu provinces.
Last night the rebels dislodged the allied troops of Burundi and DRC which ended in the capture of strategic Uvira city which neighbours Burundi.
Monday night was ushered in with jubilations and a cloud of excitement under the dark after the battle hardened AFC/M23 Rebels captured Uvira City which has been under the control of government forces in collaboration with Burundi forces.
“Karibu sana”, one of the residents in Uvira was heard yelling in excitement as rebels walked smiling on the streets while electricity was off.
The capture of Uvira city comes just one day after President Felix Tshisekedi addressed the National Assembly Chambers in Kinshasa, “where he lied about the peace agreements he signed,” according to a Critic.
A captured Burundian soldier identified as Iringiye Samuel told the rebels that he arrived on DRC territory in November just right after few months of basic military training.
“You look too young. Are your colleagues like you?”, a M23 Rebel was heard interrogating the Burundian soldier who looked utterly confused.
“Most of my fellow soldiers run away in disary after heavy fire,”Samuel said as the M23 fighters laughed at him after asking him what he makes of the situation on ground in DRC.
Willy Ngoma the spokesperson of the rebels was seen parading a large cache’ of weapons abandoned by fleeing Burundian Forces.
“You can see these ammunition boxes are inscribed on Burundi military insignia, see their identification documents, health insurance cards and their ranks all abandoned,” Ngoma Said.
The rebels have called for calm and that all Uvira residents to return to their homes and businesses.
“We assure you that you will all be safe. Do not accept the lies of the Kinshasa regime. You will see the difference in our management,” said Moise Nyarugabo one of the rebel movement officials early Tuesday morning in a video message.
Meanwhile, in a well calibrated message, the rebels have told the FARDC and the wazalendo, “we don’t have problems with you, you are our brothers, our enemies are the FDLR and the Burundian Army who come to kill our brothers.”
The rebel movement also cautions the civil society, “avoid dividing the population. We must live together”.
What is next after liberation of Uvira?
According to a rebel Commander, Burundi has deployed in DRC its Imbonerakure militia whose ideology is to exterminate ethnic Tutsi.
The presence of Imbonerakure alongside the FARDC and Wazalendo in the middle highlands of Uvira, they even share positions.
The Imbonerakure sanctioned by the UN in 2015, is regularly accused of serious abuses against political opponents and human rights defenders in Burundi.
The AFC/M23 rebels will find themselves confronting the Imbonerakure as they push them out of the country and with the possibility of extending the war across the border.
This situation could spark involvement of foreign armies but also it could trigger an internal uprising due to the suffering of Burundian people.
According to a journalist Baelenge Irenge, President Félix Tshisekedi made a round-trip from Kinshasa to Bujumbura on Monday to beg his ally President Évariste Ndayishimiye not to abandon him.
“Unfortunately, Burundi reportedly informed him that the war in the DRC is starting to spill over onto its territory, posing a danger to Burundians. Nearly abandoned, Tshisekedi is now turning to Tanzania. But on the ground, the situation is already catastrophic,” Irenge said via X.
