Congo, Rwanda spar over protocol to disarm Rwandan rebels

DAKAR, July 29 (Reuters) – Congo said on Tuesday a Rwandan armed group operating in eastern Congo had signed a protocol committing to disarmament, but Rwanda rejected the move as inconsistent with a U.S.-brokered peace agreement between the two countries.

• Congo’s government said the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a group founded by ethnic Hutu fighters including some linked to the perpetrators of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, had signed a protocol on disarmament, demobilisation and cantonment.

• The FDLR is a central issue in a peace deal signed by Congo and Rwanda in Washington last year aimed at ending the conflict in eastern Congo. The agreement commits the parties to implement a plan providing for the neutralisation of the FDLR and the disengagement of Rwandan forces in eastern Congo, making progress on the group a key test of the deal.

• Rwanda has long accused Congo of cooperating with the group, while Kinshasa accuses Kigali of backing AFC/M23 rebels. Fighting has continued despite the peace deal.

• A copy of the protocol obtained by Reuters shows the FDLR agreeing in principle to disarm, demobilise and move into cantonment sites under a planned process, subject to security guarantees and protection from forced extradition to Rwanda.

• The protocol does not specify how many fighters are covered, where cantonment sites would be located, when disarmament would begin, or whether any fighters have already surrendered weapons.

• Congolese government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya said the protocol was in line with the Washington agreement and represented progress toward implementing Congo’s obligations.

• Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe called the protocol a delaying tactic, saying the peace deal required the FDLR’s neutralisation rather than negotiations with the group.

• The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

(Reporting by Congo newsroom; Writing by Clement Bonnerot; Editing by Jessica Donati and Sanjeev Miglani)