UN Security Council calls for M23 to stop offensive in eastern DR Congo, ‘external forces’ withdraw

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 27 : The United Nations Security Council on Sunday demanded that Rwanda-backed M23 rebels stop their ongoing offensive and advance towards Goma, the largest city in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and that “external forces” in the region immediately withdraw.

“The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms ongoing advances by the M23 in North-Kivu, including the control of Masisi centre on 4 January 2025 and of Sake on 23 January 2025, and expressed serious concerns regarding imminent threats against Goma, which are putting hundreds of thousands of civilians at heightened risk,” a press statement issued by the 1-member body said.

The council called for M23 to halt its offensive came just hours after the rebels said they had taken Goma following a lightning advance that has forced thousands of people to flee and fuelled concerns of a regional war. No official confirmation was immediately available here.

Earlier at the Security Council meeting, Ambassador Munir Akram, permanent representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, said that Pakistan supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DR Congo and deplored any foreign intervention in its internal affairs.

“We call for the withdrawal of Rwandan forces from the territory of the DRC,” he said.

The Council’s statement urged Rwanda and the DRC to return to the dialogue process to achieve peace and address issues related to the presence of Rwanda Defence Forces in the eastern Congo and Congolese support for the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).

In its statement, the Security Council “condemned the ongoing flagrant disregard for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC, including the unauthorized presence in the Eastern DRC of external forces”.

It did not explicitly name the external forces but demanded that they “withdraw immediately.”

The Council further reiterated their condemnation of the systematic illicit exploitation of the natural resources in eastern DRC, noting that these actions fuel the conflict.