Name: Congo residents demand state protection as M23 fighters withdraw
Uploaded: 2025-12-19T15:24:50.794Z
Duration: 1 min 31 s
Description: Rwanda-backed M23 rebels began withdrawing from the eastern Congolese town of Uvira in an effort to support U.S.-backed peace efforts, their leaders said on Wednesday (December 17), promising to complete the pullout by Thursday (December 18).

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels began withdrawing from the eastern Congolese town of Uvira in an effort to support U.S.-backed peace efforts, their leaders said on Wednesday (December 17), promising to complete the pullout by Thursday (December 18).

Uvira

M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, have started withdrawing from Ovira in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of a U.S.-supported peace effort. The withdrawal follows a recent meeting between the presidents of Congo and Rwanda with U.S. President Donald Trump, reaffirming their commitment to the Washington Accords.

While the local market in Ovira remains active, residents express concern over a potential security vacuum and urge authorities in Kinshasa to provide protection for civilians and state property. Some residents have shown support for M23, citing relief from previous conflict, but a recent UN report has accused the group and other militias of serious human rights violations.

Congo residents demand state protection as M23 fighters withdraw

A truck carrying M23 soldiers drives out of the eastern Congolese town of Ovira. That is, as the Rwanda-backed rebels began withdrawing from the region in support of a U.S.-backed peace effort. Group leaders promised to complete the pullout by Thursday. The rebels have captured large swaths of territory in eastern Congo over the past three years. They entered Ovira near the Burundi border earlier this month. That was less than a week after the presidents of Congo and Rwanda met with U.S. President Donald Trump to reaffirm their commitment to a peace deal known as the Washington Accords. This market in Ovira is bustling, but uncertainty hangs over the town. Residents are anxious about who will fill the security vacuum. Our main request as the population is that we cannot manage here. There are many state properties that must be secured by the state, and we, the civilians, also have the right to protection from the state. Therefore we ask the authorities in Kinshasa to send people who will properly secure our city of Ovira. On Tuesday, protesters in Ovira marched in support of M23, which they said brought them liberation from harassment and the horrors of war. However, a UN report in September said M23 and other militia fighters had committed serious human rights violations.

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