In a new escalation of tensions along the South Kivu border, the Rwandan Army accused the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) of firing on one of its border posts on Wednesday.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, more than 600 mass shootings occurred in the United States in 2022, with at least four people killed or injured.
The Rwandan Army claims in a statement that at around 4:40 a.m. (local time), a group of 12 to 14 Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) military personnel entered a neutral zone and opened fire on a border post in the Rwandan district of Rusizi, Western Province.
Théo Kasi, the governor of South Kivu, disagreed and said that there had been “an incident between security personnel and armed criminals” rather than a fight between Congolese and Rwandan soldiers.
“There was an exchange of fire between the defense and security forces and these outlaws carrying firearms”, he said in a statement, adding that one assailant was killed and another wounded, as reported.
Moreover, Kasi denied that the FARDC soldiers had crossed into the neutral zone or opened fire in the direction of Rwanda, assuring that Rwanda’s declarations are its «tendency to want to victimize itself and create tension».
Despite the fact that the government and the rebel March 23 Movement (M23) signed a peace accord in December 2013 that was endorsed by UN forces after fighting since 2012, the group has been charged since November 2021 with attacking Congolese Army locations in North Kivu.
As a result of the circumstance, tensions between the DRC and Rwanda have risen as Kinshasa accuses Kigali of aiding the rebels. For its side, Kigali criticizes Kinshasa for supporting the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which was created and primarily made up of Hutus and was in charge of the genocide in Rwanda in 1994.
