Name: M23 says it will withdraw from seized Congo town after U.S. request
Uploaded: 2025-12-16T14:53:38.210Z
Duration: 1 min 36 s
Description: Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have said they would withdraw from the eastern Congo town of Uvira at the request of the U.S. administration, which had criticized seizure of the town last week as a threat to mediation efforts.

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have said they would withdraw from the eastern Congo town of Uvira at the request of the U.S. administration, which had criticized seizure of the town last week as a threat to mediation efforts.

Uvira

The M23 rebel group stated it will withdraw from the city of Uvira in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo after a request from the United States. This follows criticism from the U.S. administration, which described the group's seizure of the city as a threat to ongoing mediation efforts. 

While a buffer zone has been proposed, reports indicate that M23 fighters remain in the city, and local protest organizers have described the group as 'liberators.' The United Nations has reported that Rwanda exerts control over M23, though Rwanda denies involvement. The conflict has led to significant casualties and displacement in the region.

M23 says it will withdraw from seized Congo town after U.S. request

A protest in Democratic Republic of Congo's Uvira on Tuesday in support of Rwanda-backed M23. That's as the rebels said they will withdraw from the eastern city at the request of the United States. Donald Trump's administration had criticized M23's seizure of the city last week as a threat to mediation efforts. The extent to which M23 was involved in this protest was unclear. One civil society activist in Uvira said the rebels are still in the city. A coordinator of the protest described M23 as, quote, liberators and rejected the call for the fighters to leave. A rebel source said both M23 and Congolese forces would withdraw three miles from Uvira to establish a buffer zone. That's something M23 had proposed at a press conference last week. The group had entered Uvira less than a week after this meeting of the presidents of Rwanda and Congo. In Washington, they had affirmed their commitment to a peace deal. M23 is not party to those negotiations, though has been participating in separate talks hosted by Qatar. However, United Nations experts have said Rwanda exercises command and control over the insurgents. Rwanda denies backing M23 and has blamed Congolese and Burundian forces for renewed fighting. M23's lightning advance since January has seen it seize eastern Congo's two biggest cities. Thousands of people have been killed and hundreds of thousands displaced. The insurgents have since worked to establish a parallel administration. And that potentially sets the vast Central African country up for an enduring fracture.

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