MONUC warns foreign forces may return to DRC if fighting continues

The field commander of UN peacekeeping forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Maj-Gen Mountaga Diallo, warned on Wednesday that fighting among Congolese in eastern part of the country could result in the return of recently departed foreign troops. He was speaking at a joint news conference in Kinshasa with the UN secretary-general's special representative in the country, Amos Namanga Ngongi. Diallo was referring to the fighting last weekend between the pro-government Congolese Mayi-Mayi militias and the pro-Rwandan Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD-Goma). Following the departure of Rwandan troops on 5 October, the Mayi-Mayi began attacking RCD-Goma positions in the east of the country, capturing the town of Uvira on Sunday. "It is regrettable that soon after foreign troops have left the DRC, the Congolese have resumed war," Ngongi said. The Rwandan Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed "grave concern" on Tuesday at the fighting, saying, "The continued movement of these genocidal forces towards our border poses a threat to the security of Rwanda and the whole region". The ministry called on the third parties to the Lusaka and Pretoria agreements, under which foreign forces were to withdraw from DRC, to "fulfil their mandate by ensuring that all parties respect their obligations and to condemn, in clear terms, this violation of the above agreements". Rwanda said that militant Rwandan Hutu groups - soldiers of the former armed forces of Rwanda, known as the ex-FAR, and Interahamwe militiamen - had been "the major force" in the capture of Uvira. It added that about 10 military boats mounted with Katyusha rocket-launchers and other weapons on Lake Tanganyika had been used to attack Uvira. Rwanda said it was "closely monitoring" the situation and expected a response from "all who share the concern for security in the Great Lakes region".