Will the Rwanda-Congo war end?

A heartfelt plea from Goma

- IAN FANTOM

IN January 2025, the city of Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s province of North Kivu, was attacked by an invasion force of the M23 militia, and only then did the world start to take notice of this terrible war.

In 1959, the Tutsi monarchy was overthrown by the majority Hutus, but the Tutsis reformed in Uganda, and reinvaded in 1990, leading to civil war. This culminated in the genocide of 1994.

The British had a hidden hand in this. United Nations reports queried whether UK development aid to Rwanda has in fact partially financed the Congo wars.

The special relationship between Britain and Rwanda became apparent with the national debate on a proposal to send illegal immigrants from Britain to Rwanda. During that debate, I received an email from a resident of North Kivu saying that such a scheme could make the situation even worse for them.

Local people were claiming that the M23 ‘rebels’ were a group supported by Rwanda. At the time that claim was contentious, but now everyone seems to accept it, other than Rwanda. Effectively, M23 is an invasion force. What is not generally understood is that Rwanda is supported by the British. The area is rich in minerals.

Israel, too, has a special relationship with Rwanda, and has been sending unwanted immigrants to Rwanda, though this was done in secret and was eventually quashed by the Israeli Supreme Court.

Various academic articles point to the closeness of that relationship. ‘Despite widespread condemnation of Israel, Rwanda became an unofficial supporter of the Jewish State during the [Gaza] conflict,’ one article states.