From an essay by Vijay Prashad on the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Wars in the DRC’s eastern provinces have been ongoing since the early 1990s. A 2010 UN report describes between March 1993 and June 2003, “deaths of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people”. One estimate, based on studies conducted in 2000 and 2004, suggests that more than 3 million people have died in the conflict since 1998.
M23 rebels have expanded their attacks in the DRC. In retaliation, the DRC expelled Rwandan Ambassador Vincent Karega. The M23 with the assistance of Rwanda troops captured Kiwanja and Rutshuru, two towns in the DRC’s North Kivu province.
In August, a leaked report from the United Nations showed that Rwanda had backed the M23. It was difficult for Rwanda to deny the details in the report, particularly after U.S. Ambassador Robert Wood told the UN Security Council that his government calls “on state actors to stop their support for these groups, including the Rwandan Defense Forces’ assistance to M23.”
Former DRC presidential candidate Martin Fayulu said recently that he is distressed by the lack of international attention to this conflict.
“Ukraine is having a problem,” he said, and the widespread media coverage has brought the world’s attention to that. “We are having a problem in Congo, but nobody is condemning Rwanda. Why?”
Perhaps, it has to do with the cobalt, copper, lithium, and the trees of the rainforest, precious resources that continue to be exploited by the rest of the world despite the carnage.
Taken from here
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