In a statement released Saturday, May 10, AFC/M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka said that Burundi has been deploying troops in support of the Kinshasa government's military campaign while covertly equipping Wazalendo fighters via the town of Uvira, near the Burundian border.
Kanyuka said the allegations were substantiated after the Congolese Revolutionary Army (ARC), the military wing of M23, captured and presented to the media several combatants affiliated with the Congolese army (FARDC), the Wazalendo militia, and the FDLR. The fighters were reportedly apprehended while destabilising areas around the city of Goma.
'We commend the professionalism of ARC,' said Kanyuka, 'whose actions not only helped halt the massacre of civilians in Goma and South Kivu but also exposed Burundi's role in the violence.'
In recent weeks, Wazalendo militias have been engaged in deadly clashes with the Twirwaneho armed group in Uvira territory, South Kivu, committing atrocities against civilians, including killings. AFC/M23 blames these actions on foreign-backed support, particularly from Burundi.
The accusations come barely a month after AFC/M23 and the DRC government announced a ceasefire agreement brokered by Qatar on April 23, 2025, intended to pave the way for peace talks in Doha. However, M23 now claims the Congolese government has violated the agreement multiple times.
'We alert the national and international community to the repeated violations of the April 23 joint declaration and the unilateral ceasefire declared by AFC/M23,' Kanyuka stated.
M23 reaffirmed its readiness to protect civilians and 'eliminate the threat at its source,' signalling a possible escalation in hostilities if diplomatic avenues fail.
Wycliffe Nyamasege
Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/afc-m23-accuses-burundi-of-arming-financing-wazalendo-militia
