The United Nations has warned of threats to the civilian population in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) following the resurgent of a ‘deadlier and well-armed’ M23 rebel group.

The head of UN Stabilization Mission in the DRC known as MONUSCO, Bintou Keita, who raised the alarm on Wednesday, said the return of the rebel group which has morphed from a ragtag militia group to a sophisticated and structured rebel group and the manner in which they go about their activities have raised serious concerns.

“The resurgent M23 possesses firepower and equipment, which is increasingly sophisticated, specifically in terms of long-range fire capacities, mortars, machine guns, as well as precision fire against aircraft.

“During the most recent hostilities, the M23 has conducted itself increasingly as a conventional army, rather than an armed group,” Keita said while addressing the UN Security Council.

She added that In the past three months, the UN has recorded nearly 1,000 deaths and scores of injuries in the DRC provinces of North and South Kivu and Ituri because of attacks by M23 group in clashes with security forces which ultimately lead to civilian casualties.

“Should the M23 continue its well-coordinated attacks against FARDC and MONUSCO with increasing conventional capabilities, the mission may find itself confronted by a threat that goes beyond its current capabilities,” she said.

The M23 was defeated by Congo’s army (FARDC) and UN peacekeeping forces (MONUSCO) in 2013 and they fled the country into neighbouring Rwanda where they regrouped and in November 2021, its forces began to reemerge, becoming better equipped, deadlier and more sophisticated.

Congolese officials have continued to blame Rwanda for allegedly giving support to the group which claims to be protecting the Tutsi minority in eastern DRC, while Rwanda’s government which is Tutsi-led has denies any link to the rebel group.