Africa
DRC signs peace deal with M23 rebels but experts in North Kivu remain sceptical
Weeks after signing a peace deal with Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has reached an accord with M23 rebels operating in the country’s North Kivu region. But long-time observers of the DRC’s attempts to restore peace within its borders aren’t ready to celebrate.
Following an initial peace deal with Rwanda last month, the DRC signed a ceasefire agreement with M23 rebels on Saturday in Qatar.
In this Statement of Intent, the parties agree to protect civilians and respect Congolese sovereignty. But on the ground in Goma, provincial capital of North Kivu and under the control of Kigali-backed insurgents, observers are sceptical.
For Congolese journalist and pan-African civil rights activist Maude-Salomé Ekila, this latest agreement is reminiscent of many others that raised hopes when they were signed but were trampled underfoot on the altar of the interests of each stakeholder:
“What’s dramatic is that we’ve been systematically reproducing the same patterns for all these years. There’s a system of international predation organized to exploit Congolese resources. And we forget that this is the heart of the matter. And every possible tool is being used so that this predation and this plan, which has been going on for decades now, can achieve certain objectives.”
Like many local observers, Ekila is frustrated by an agreement that demonstrates the inability of the Congolese government to ensure the integrity of its territory.
“You see, we’re once again in a position of great weakness, because we’ve had a defense apparatus that’s been corrupted in every sense and that hasn’t allowed us to face up to the hyper-sophisticated army we had in front of us, an army completely supported by the Rwandan army in reality, which supports the M23, which supports the AFC politico-military platform,” Ekila told Africanews.
“And so we found ourselves in a weak position to negotiate. What did we negotiate? That’s the question: are we going to be able to meet the deadline set in this communiqué?”
The problem, Ekila says, is justice:
“From the moment when the protagonists know that they can do it again, that in any case, there will be agreements that will not be kept and that will reproduce other militias, because there has been no justice, because justice has been bartered on the altar of so-called peace, just as justice is bartered on the altar of pseudo-democracy every time, we find ourselves in a situation where the facts are repeated. It’s cyclical and, as a result, a system of predation quietly goes on its way.”
The Statement of Intent will come into force immediately upon signing and must be implemented by 29 July. It provides for the opening of direct negotiations for a comprehensive peace agreement by 8 August. These discussions will be based on the agreement signed last month in Washington between the DRC and Rwanda.
The aim is to conclude and sign this comprehensive peace agreement by 18 August. Experts, however, doubt that the timetable will be met.
A British man who dreamed of looking like James Bond was convicted on Tuesday of attempting to spy for Russia.
Howard Phillips, 65, attempted to pass information about former Defence Secretary Grant Shapps to two men he believed to be Russian agents. In reality, they were undercover British secret agents.
The jury at Winchester Crown Court found Howard Phillips guilty of aiding what he believed to be a foreign intelligence agency. The unanimous verdict was reached after four hours of deliberation.
He has been remanded in custody and will be sentenced in the autumn. No specific date has been set.
Prosecutors said Mr Phillips had offered to pass on Mr Shapps’ details and the location where he kept his private plane to ‘allow the Russians to eavesdrop on British defence plans’.
The defendant’s ex-wife told the court that Phillips dreamed of being like James Bond’ and that he watched films about the British secret service because he was ‘infatuated’ with it.
Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s counter-terrorism division, said the conviction sent a clear message to anyone considering spying for Russia.
‘Mr Phillips was brazen in his pursuit of financial gain, with no regard for the potential harm caused to his own country,’ Ms David said.
Representatives of the Arab League held an emergency meeting in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss the war in Gaza and the unfolding humanitarian crisis inside the enclave.
Palestine requested the extraordinary session amid the escalating famine threatening the more than 2 million people living in Gaza.
“Gaza is dying of hunger, Gaza is planned to be [evacuated], a so-called humanitarian city is being prepared for Gaza, a new city of death and prison under humanitarian labels”, said Ahmad Abu Holi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s executive committee.
Abu Holi condemned the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has largely taken over aid distribution in the enclave since the end of Israel’s 11-week aid blockade.
He said the Israeli-backed group forces civilians to “fall in killing traps”, or “die from hunger.”
More than 1,000 starving people have been killed since the end of May, according to the United Nations Palestinian Refugees agency (UNRWA).
The UN food agency, meanwhile, accused Israeli forces of firing on a crowd of Palestinians seeking humanitarian aid over the weekend.
The Gaza Health Ministry called it one of the deadliest attacks on aid-seekers in the war that has driven the territory to the brink of famine.
Jordan’s representative to the Arab League, Amjad Adaileh, said the Arab states “won’t forget the steadfast Gaza whose people are bleeding, suffering and starving, due to the brutal and continuous violations against the [Gaza] Strip for 21 months.”
Several NGOs, including Amnesty International, have accused Israel of using starvation in Gaza as a weapon of genocide.
In a previous summit, Arab League leaders called for increased pressure on Israel to end the war in Gaza.
Morocco’s Foreign Minister Nasser Burita has visited Skopje for talks with his North Macedonian counterpart, Timco Mucunski.
The ministers said they discussed deepening the political dialogue between the two countries and developing a partnership in the areas of economy, tourism, culture, and infrastructure.
“However, our bilateral relationship is more significant than the politics itself,” Mucunski told reporters. “
“They should mean more achievements for our businesses and citizens, too. So, we open the next topic to hold a Business Forum in Morocco, where we will participate with our businessmen, to meet Morocco`s business sector, too, and to point out what kind of investments we should have and trade as well.”
Mucunski said North Macedonia and Morocco “share common strategic values,” including with the European Union, which Skopje is hoping to join.
“Here I see the relationship that Morocco has with the EU, but also the good relations that Morocco has with the US and the UK, two countries with which we share a strategic partnership,” Mucunski said.
Burita and Mucunski said they are working to establishing direct flights between the two countries, a step expected to improve communication and trade.
They also reaffirmed their support for the UN-led process for Western Sahara, highlighting a 2007 Moroccan initiative for autonomy as a credible basis for a solution.
The meeting marked the first visit of a Moroccan Foreign Minister to North Macedonia.
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