UN experts: Between 3,000 and 4,000 Rwandan troops are in Congo operating with the M23 rebel group

Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.N. experts say that between 3,000 and 4,000 Rwanda government forces are deployed in neighboring eastern Congo, operating alongside the M23 rebel group which has been making major advances. In a report circulated Wednesday, the experts called the estimate of Rwandan troops “conservative.” They said the Rwandans’ “systematic support and presence” supporting M23 in its territorial conquest “is a sanctionable act,” and their deployment is a violation of Congo’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Rwandan forces’ “de facto control and direction over M23 operations also renders Rwanda liable for the actions of M23,” the panel of experts said in the report to the U.N. Security Council.