Search
AI-powered search, human-powered content.
scroll to top arrow or icon

{{ subpage.title }}

Members of the M23 rebel group stand guard at the opening ceremony of Caisse Generale d'epargne du Congo (CADECO) which will serve as the bank for the city of Goma where all banks have closed since the city was taken by the M23 rebels, in Goma, North Kivu province in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo, April 7, 2025.

REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi

Does the Congo truce portend peace? Or a potential civil war?

The Democratic Republic of the Congo and an alliance of militias led by the notorious M23 rebels announced a ceasefire on Thursday after talks in Qatar and, after three years of violence, said they would work toward a permanent truce. Meanwhile, Congo will reportedly sign a broad declaration of principles on a minerals deal with Rwanda on Friday in Washington, DC. The UN, US, EU, and other governments accuse Rwanda of using M23 to control valuable mines in Congo, but Washington is in the midst of talks with Congo to secure access to those same minerals, for which a deal with Rwanda is a necessary first step.

M23 recently seized the two principal cities in northeastern Congo, Goma, and Bukavu. At least six previous ceasefires in the long-running conflict have failed, turning hundreds of thousands of people into refugees and exposing them to violence, hunger, lack of shelter, and pervasive sexual exploitation.

Poorly trained and equipped Congolese troops have proven ineffective at fighting the rebels, and UN peacekeepers in the region are widely distrusted — even hated — by locals. A South African-led multinational force that held Goma for over a year was surrounded and pushed back in January; by March, they had completely withdrawn.

With Congo’s military situation in such disarray, a truce may be President Felix Tshisekedi’s only option, but his former ally-turned-archrival Joseph Kabila is proving a thorn in his side. Kabila, who ruled the DRC as president from 2001 to 2019 before going into exile in 2023, has reportedly been spotted in M23-controlled Goma. He has long accused Tshisekedi of mishandling the M23 situation — and we’re watching whether he uses this opportunity to launch a play for power.

Congolese and Belgian citizens take part in a protest in Brussels, while clashes between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo take place in DRC.

REUTERS/Yves Herman

Peace talks collapse between M23 rebels and DRC, diplomats expelled

Rwandan-backed M23 rebels have withdrawn from peace talks with the Democratic Republic of Congo that were set to start Tuesday in Angola, citing sanctions imposed by the European Commission on Rwandan officials for plundering mineral wealth in the DRC. This is the second time talks have collapsed since December, when they were canceled after Rwanda demanded a direct dialogue between the DRC and the M23 rebels, which DRC President Félix Tshisekedi refused.

Read moreShow less

Health workers bring a patient for surgery, at the CBCA Ndosho Hospital, a few days after the M23 rebel group seized the town of Goma, in Goma, North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on Feb. 1, 2025.

REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi

Rebels advance, diplomacy stalls in the DRC

At least 700 people have been killed over the past week in Goma, the largest city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. According to the UN, over 2,800 people have also been injured as Rwandan-backed M23 rebels took control of the city and are now reportedly moving south toward the city of Bukavu. Observers believe that M23’s war with government forces, which displaced 400,000 people in January alone, could quickly spiral into a regional war.
Read moreShow less
- YouTube

DeepSeek puts US-China relations on edge

Ian Bremmer shares his insights on global politics this week on World In :60.

How is China's AI app DeepSeek disrupting the AI industry?

It certainly seems to be making people concerned that the Chinese are a lot closer to the Americans and the Trump administration is not sleeping on this. They clearly feel that China is technologically very capable, very advanced. Frankly, different than Biden felt when he first became president, though he got up to speed on that pretty quickly. And I think that's going to lead to a much tougher competition between the United States and China. Those that think that a deal is coming, that Trump is going to engage with China because he wants to find a way to not have to put tariffs on, I don't think that's going to happen because you're going to have so much more efforts to contain the Chinese in all sorts of areas of advanced technology broadly speaking.

They are way ahead in data. The Americans are ahead in compute, and they're both going to lean into the opportunities that they have. And the Americans are going to use their firepower from a government perspective with other countries around the world as well. That's what I think.

Read moreShow less

Protesters clash with riot police forces in front of the French Embassy in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, on Jan. 28, 2025.

REUTERS/Benoit Nyem

Goma falls as embassies attacked in Kinshasa

M23 rebels have seized the airport in Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and overrun the city in the worst sectarian violence since 2012. Streets are strewn with bodies, and there are reports of heavy gunfire, rape, and looting. Hospitals are under attack, and an Ebola research lab lost power, putting samples at risk, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross. Should the virus be released among the local population, the agency said the impact would be “unimaginable.”

Read moreShow less

Internally displaced civilians from the camps in Munigi and Kibati carry their belongings as they flee following the fight between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, on Jan. 26, 2025.

REUTERS/Aubin Mukoni

Goma under siege as DRC cuts ties with Rwanda

Rwandan-backed M23 rebels on Monday claimed they now control Goma, the largest city in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Fighting intensified in recent days following the killing of a Congolese military governor who was visiting the frontlines on Thursday. The rebels have told DRC army personnel to hand in their weapons to the UN peacekeeping mission. Flights are grounded, roads are blocked, and there is “mass panic and flight among the population” of one million people, according to UN special representative for Congo Bintou Keita.
Read moreShow less

FILE PHOTO: Members of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) stand guard against the M23 rebel group in Lubero, North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo October 27, 2024.

REUTERS/Djaffar Al Katanty/File Photo

Rwanda-backed rebels seize towns in Congo

The rebel March 23 Movement, aka M23, reportedly supported by Rwanda,captured the strategic town of Masisi in the Democratic Republic of Congo's North Kivu province from the army and pro-government militias on Saturday. Masisi, population 40,000, sits just 50 miles north of Goma, the provincial capital, home to two million Congolese — and is a key sanctuary for refugees.

Read moreShow less

Malawi soldiers part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) military mission for eastern Congo, wait for the ceremony to repatriate the two bodies of South African soldiers killed in the ongoing war between M23 rebels and the Congolese army in Goma, North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo February 20, 2024.

REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi

Congolese ceasefire collapsing as peacekeepers’ mandate extended

Fighters from the M23 rebel group in northeastern Congo have been targeting civilians in violation of a July ceasefire agreement, according to the Southern African Development Community, whose peacekeeping mandate there will expire on Dec. 15.

Read moreShow less

Subscribe to our free newsletter, GZERO Daily

Latest