The Ministry of Communication and Media in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) announced on Tuesday in a press release an attack perpetrated by the Rwandan army against one of its Sukhoi 25 planes in Goma, in the province of North Kivu, in the east of the country.
The Government “condemns and strongly denounces” this attack carried out while the fighter plane was beginning to land on the runway of Goma international airport, says the press release, which draws attention to the fact that “Rwandan fire was directed at a Congolese aircraft flying inside Congolese territory. It did not fly over Rwandan airspace. The plane landed without major material damage.
This attack is in addition to the offensive launched on Tuesday morning by the Rwandan army towards Kitchanga and immediately repelled by the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC), deplores the government, adding that, in between – time, it is observed columns of soldiers of the Rwandan army coming from Rwanda to reinforce the positions of Kibumba and Bwito in anticipation of other criminal actions.
The Congolese authorities consider “this umpteenth attack by Rwanda as a deliberate act of aggression which amounts to an act of war whose only objective is to sabotage the efforts in progress in the implementation of the actions agreed within the framework of the processes of Luanda and Nairobi for the restoration of peace in eastern DRC and in the Great Lakes region”.
The attack came a few days before the start of voter registration operations in central and eastern DRC. In this context, the “government draws the attention of the international community to the urgent need to maintain pressure on Rwanda and the M23 terrorist movement so that they cease the violence which risks jeopardizing these operations in this election year.
Although engaged in the various peace processes, Kinshasa says it reserves “the legitimate right to defend its national territory and will not let it go”.
By OMA Newsletter N° 1021 of 01/25/2023
Article published under the direction of Dr. Najib Kettani
The OMA, NGO with an Intercontinental vocation
For the development of cultural exchanges
Valuing human potential
The promotion and consolidation of Africa’s development, and
Inter-African integration
