Hundreds of Rwandan troops reported killed in DRC despite official denials

Hundreds of Rwandan troops have been killed during covert operations in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), contradicting claims from Kigali that its soldiers are not involved in the conflict there.

- Mark Townsend Michela Wrong

Multiple intelligence, military and diplomatic sources said that "very significant" numbers of soldiers from the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) have died supporting an offensive by M23 rebels in DRC.

Satellite imagery of one military cemetery in the Rwandan capital of Kigali indicates at least 600 graves have been dug since the M23-backed by RDF troops restarted operations within the DRC three years ago. Two high-ranking intelligence officials with knowledge of the RDF said Rwanda's true losses probably ran into the "thousands", but pinning down a definite figure is challenging.

Another senior source said a number of dead Rwandan troops were secretly buried in "mass graves" in the DRC when it was impossible to return their bodies across the border.

They said families were given empty coffins. "Not all soldiers that perished in DRC were able to be repatriated, especially in areas under a lot of fire," they said. "Some were buried in mass graves."

Rwandan casualties are so high that a new wing has been built at Kigali's military hospital. Its mortuary was full, the source said.

Rwanda continues to deny its forces have crossed into DRC. It has repeatedly denied involvement in supporting the M23 rebels and has never acknowledged that its troops have died in the conflict.

But UN experts say the Rwandan army is in "de facto control" of M23 rebels, who last month seized Goma, capital of the DRC's North Kivu province, and control a swathe of the DRC almost half the size of Rwanda.