Congo vs Rwanda: a rebel proxy war, or a war on a genocidal militia?
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels seized the eastern Congolese city of Goma, displacing huge numbers of civilians. Kinshasa calls it a Rwandan invasion for minerals; Kigali says it is only defending itself from a Hutu militia based in Congo.
The summary above is a neutral framing. Below, each side reports the same story in its own words — judge for yourself.
Kinshasa and UN investigators say M23 is a Rwanda-backed force that seized Goma with thousands of Rwandan troops, committing atrocities and forcibly recruiting civilians — an invasion of Congolese territory driven partly by mineral wealth.
Rwanda denies arming M23 for Congo's minerals, insisting its only concern is the FDLR — a Hutu militia tied to the 1994 genocide that operates from Congo alongside the Congolese army — a genuine threat on its border.
