When the United States hunted Osama bin Laden across sovereign borders, the world applauded. When NATO bombed Libya into oblivion in pursuit of Muammar Gaddafi, it was justified as securing Western interests. When France intervened in the Sahel, it was called counterterrorism. The logic is simple: Western powers have the right to wage war beyond their borders in the name of security. They need no permission, no justification. Their enemies—real or perceived—are targets, no matter where they hide. But Rwanda? No, Rwanda is not supposed to act like a real country. It is not supposed to defend itself the way great powers do. The world does not expect it to be sovereign—it expects it to explain, justify, and beg for permission to exist in peace. But Rwanda is not playing by those rules.
Who is President Paul Kagame? He is the leader the world calls when they need results. Global security? He is in. Health emergencies? He is in. Trade, development, innovation? He is there, building solutions while others talk. He is a collateral. You can take him to the bank for a loan. You can count on him. And, leave him alone, he will extend the same favour. For those who know him well, he is good man. Simple as that, until you poke him.
But there is one thing you must never do—threaten the sovereignty of his country. Kagame is not just a leader. He is a military clinical operator. He does not waste words where action is required. Do not be fooled by the size of the country he leads or the resources he commands. He has built an army that is not just disciplined but stealth, lethal, and precise. No western world doubts this because they know Rwanda’s training kit, and the doctrine; impressive. Kagame is a smooth general, a calculated strategist. And if Rwanda must fight, it will not fight to prove a point—it will fight to win.
And yet, equating Rwanda with the West is seen as stubborn and un-African. How dare an African nation conduct itself with the confidence and strategic discipline of a superpower? Who are these people who defend themselves this seriously? Who are these M23? They are Rwandan kins. They are stealth. They are lethal, and that is a Rwandan DNA, read about the history of Rwandan warriors. The only difference is that M23 are geographically Congolese, but Rwandans in the skin. And above all, they are fighting against an existential threat.
The world asks, “Who are these M23?” The answer is simple: They are Congolese Rwandophones. They are the sons and grandsons of those cast aside by colonial borders and persecuted for existing. And they are not rebels in the traditional sense. They are highly organized, well-trained, and deeply motivated. They do not loot, rape, or massacre civilians like the Congolese army and its allies. They fight because their survival depends on it. The Democratic Republic of Congo has long persecuted Rwandophones, denying them rights, branding them as foreigners, and subjecting them to waves of ethnic massacres. The FDLR, a genocidal militia, is not just tolerated in Congo—it is protected, armed, and integrated into the national army. For Rwanda, this is not just a concern—it is an active threat.
The very existence of the FDLR justifies Rwanda’s right to pursue them wherever they are. If the U.S. went after bin Laden, if NATO crushed Gaddafi, then Rwanda has every right to neutralize a group whose sole purpose is to “finish the job” of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
Now, the international community watches as the Congolese army commits atrocities—killing, raping, even engaging in cannibalistic horror against the Banyamulenge. Yet, instead of condemning these crimes, MONUSCO, SADC, and Western diplomats spend their energy fighting M23—the only force standing between Rwandophones and extermination. For Burundi and South Africa, shameless as they are, have lost the moral baring in supporting a repressive and genocidal regime. What’s in it for them? Moral obligation ? No! Threatened ? No! Money? Yes, and an ideological bankruptcy. That’s a story for another day. As for the humiliated mercenaries? What did they think, that it was a walk in the park? These are not times when colonialists easily walked into villages and bundled Africans into boats to slavey back home. Different times. The humane treatment, if it didn’t serve as message, then the west must be bewitched.
Meanwhile, Félix Tshisekedi, the so-called leader of Congo, has publicly threatened to kill President Kagame and run over Kigali overnight. He spewed threats, called Kagame a monster, a criminal, a thief, even Nyankaragata—“filth.” And yet, the world expects Rwanda to ignore such warmongers? To respond with cupcakes and friendly diplomacy? What an obnoxious foolery playing prick!
It is a curious thing—the West, which wages war at the mere whisper of a threat, expects Rwanda to sit still while its enemies organize, arm themselves, and plot genocide. The double standard is so blatant, it is almost comedic.
This is not a political conflict—it is a war of survival. Rwanda cannot afford to let the FDLR regroup. It cannot afford to watch its kin slaughtered across the border. And it will not be bullied into passivity by Western hypocrisy. If “Never Again” means anything, it must apply to Rwanda too. The world may hesitate, but Rwanda does not. It has the right, the means, and the will to do what any serious nation would do—defend its people at all costs. Let that sink in.
