The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has rejected claims that 20 fighters linked to the Rwandan genocide were captured on its territory, dismissing a video of their handover to Rwanda as fake.
The M23 armed group, which is backed by Rwanda, claimed on Saturday that it had captured members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a militia founded by Hutu extremists who participated in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi population in Rwanda.
Rwanda has long used the alleged presence of the FDLR in eastern DRC as justification for supporting the M23.
In recent months, the M23 has taken control of large areas of DRC’s mineral-rich east, including the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu.
The group released a video showing its forces handing over 20 alleged FDLR fighters to Rwandan authorities at a border post. However, the DRC’s armed forces dismissed the footage as propaganda.
“This is a faked incident in poor taste orchestrated with the sole aim of discrediting our army,” the Congolese armed forces chief of staff said in a statement released on Sunday, March 2, 2025.
The military accused Rwanda of staging the event, claiming that Rwandan authorities took old FDLR detainees, dressed them in fresh military uniforms, and passed them off as newly captured fighters from Goma.
The DRC high command also alleged that the Rwandan army has been committing summary executions of wounded and ill soldiers in a field hospital in Goma, calling it a “war crime and crime against humanity.”
The conflict in eastern DRC has fueled concerns of a broader regional war, potentially drawing in neighbouring countries such as Rwanda and Uganda.
