Politics

DRC/Rwanda brouhaha: Congo confirms holding 2 Rwanda soldiers. Here’s why

Published

2 years ago

May 30, 2022

A day after Rwanda accused the Democratic Republic of Congo of holding two of its soldiers, the DRC army has confirmed the two soilders were in its custody.

In recent times, there has been a sort of diplomatic brouhaha between the Central African neighbours. Recall that the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo, last Friday suspended all RwandAir flights into the country over Rwanda’s alleged support for the M23 rebels that have been fighting to take control of the eastern parts of the country.

Rwanda on its part in what looks like a counter position on Saturday said two of its soldiers were being held captive by rebels in the DRC. Rwanda in a statement “called upon authorities of the Democratic Republic of Congo that work closely with these genocidal armed groups to secure the release of the RDF soldiers.”

While confirming the arrest, however, Congo denied claims of the Rwandan army that the two soldiers were abducted during a patrol and taken to eastern DRC by the FDLR.

“Contrary to statements by Rwandan officials, “the soldiers of the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) are actually operating on Congolese territory. The proof is the arrest by the population of Corporal Nkundabangezi Elysée and soldier Minuare Gadi,” wrote Brigadier General Sylvain Ekenge of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“According to their own account, they entered Congolese soil on Wednesday 25 May 2022 to attack the Congolese military camp of Rumangabo, more than 20 kilometres from the Rwandan border, in Rutshuru territory,” the officer added.

Related Topics:AU Democratic Republic of Congo DRC/Rwanda Featured Rwanda Rwanda armies

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Politics

Mali: 7 Russian mercenaries killed

Published

15 hours ago

November 24, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

An al Qaeda offshoot in North Africa has claimed responsibility for the attack in central Mali, killing at least seven mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner private military contractor company.

Wagner earlier lost a battle in July with mostly Tuareg rebels and Islamists close to Mali’s Algerian border, exposing the perils faced by mercenaries used by military juntas in the Sahel area of West Africa.

The separatists and strong branches of Al Qaeda and Islamic State, which have taken over large areas of the Sahel over the past 12 years, are difficult for Mali and its neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger to control.

The al Qaeda offshoot JNIM claimed responsibility for the Thursday attack, according to a statement from SITE Intelligence Group, which keeps an eye on extremist activity in the area. According to SITE, JNIM captured several weapons and killed seven Russian Wagner mercenaries.

Following an attack, the bodies of at least five white males wearing army fatigues were seen laying near a military truck in a video obtained by Reuters. The validity of the footage could not be confirmed by Reuters.

SITE Intelligence posted images allegedly from JNIM that showed many crates of weapons and ammo together with the dead and bloodied bodies of troops.

Although two local officials acknowledged the incident, a Malian army source claimed to have seen seven dead bodies, including Russian fighters. Five Wagner warriors were slain, according to one of them.

At least six Russians have been murdered in the attack, which was carried out by Katiba Macina, a division of JNIM, according to a consultant working on security in the area.

The expert referred to the Russians as Africa Corps warriors, a paramilitary group under Kremlin leadership that has taken Wagner’s position in Africa throughout the previous 12 months.

Mali has previously said that Russian servicemen trainers are assisting local troops with Russian-purchased weaponry rather than mercenaries.

Politics

Mauritius’ Prime Minister to double as Finance Minister

Published

2 days ago

November 23, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In an effort to maintain a tight eye on the economy, Mauritius’ Prime Minister, Navin Ramgoolam, who took office this month following a resounding election victory, said on Friday that he would retain the position of finance minister for himself.

“We are doing an audit of the economy to see to what extent the outgoing government has destroyed it,” Ramgoolam told reporters in the capital Port Louis after he presided over the swearing-in of other ministers.

Ten years after he stepped down as prime minister, the seasoned politician returned to the position when his Alliance du Changement (ADC) alliance won 60 of the 62 seats in the national legislature.

The 77-year-old Ramgoolam said earlier this week that he would be auditing governmental finances. Before this, he was prime minister from 1995 to 2000 and again from 2005 to 2014.

Ramgoolam started a campaign in 2006 to streamline taxes and reduce bureaucracy to diversify the $10 billion economy beyond exports of sugar, textiles, and tourism.

Since then, the 1.3 million-person nation, which positions itself as a bridge between Africa and Asia, has developed into a major offshore financial hub and has been rated by the World Bank as the easiest location to do business in Africa regularly.