This contradicts earlier claims by FARDC spokesperson Major General Sylvain Ekenge and other DRC government officials, who alleged that Brig Gen Gakwerere was a Rwandan government employee and had never been in their country.
On March 1, 2025, Brig Gen Gakwerere and 13 other FDLR fighters were handed over to Rwanda by the M23 armed group via the La Corniche border in Rubavu.
M23's deputy spokesperson, Dr. Oscar Balinda, stated that Brig Gen Gakwerere was captured in Goma, while the other fighters were arrested in various locations in January 2025.
FDLR spokesperson Cure Ngoma has told the BBC that Gakwerere was indeed a senior leader within the group and had been hiding in Goma due to illness.
'I can confirm he had been sick for a long time and was hiding in Goma. He had not been seen for some time because of his illness,' Ngoma stated.
Ngoma also acknowledged that the other captured fighters were FDLR members but expressed doubts about one individual, suggesting he may have been used for propaganda.
Brig Gen Gakwerere, also known as Sibomana Stany, Sibo Stany, and Julius Mokoko, was formerly the Secretary-General of FDLR and the group's third-highest-ranking official, after its president and top military commander.
During the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, he held the rank of Lieutenant and served at the ESO/Butare military academy under Captain Ildephonse Nizeyimana, the school's deputy commander.
Reports indicate that Gakwerere led a group of newly recruited soldiers, known as the "New Formula," responsible for mass killings at roadblocks and other locations in Butare.
He is also believed to have been among the soldiers dispatched by Captain Nizeyimana to assassinate Queen Rosalie Gicanda on April 20, 1994.
Additionally, he is suspected of involvement in the murder of Jean Baptiste Habyarimana, the former governor of Butare Prefecture.
IGIHE
Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/fdlr-confirms-brig-gen-gakwerere-was-among-its-senior-leaders
