Congo and Rwanda will sign a peace deal on June 27, a major step in ending fighting in eastern Congo
Congo has accused Rwanda of backing M23 rebels in its mineral-rich eastern region across the border with Rwanda. U.N. experts say the rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from Rwanda, which has denied backing M23.
The decades-long conflict escalated in January, when the M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic Congolese city of Goma, followed by the town of Bukavu in February.
The draft agreement includes 'provisions on respect for territorial integrity and a prohibition of hostilities; disengagement, disarmament, and conditional integration of non-state armed groups,' the joint statement said Wednesday. The agreement also includes a commitment to respecting territorial integrity and the conditional integration of non-state armed groups.
Congo and Rwanda are not formally at war and in the past had held peace talks that have largely stalled, including those hosted by Qatar.
Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Congo River Alliance, a coalition of rebel groups, told The Associated Press in April that international sanctions and Congo's proposed minerals deal with the United States in search of peace would not stop the fighting.
M23 is one of about 100 armed factions vying for control in eastern Congo. But unlike the others, they are mainly made up of ethnic Tutsis who failed to integrate into the Congolese army. The group says it is defending ethnic Tutsis and Congolese of Rwandan origin from discrimination, although critics say their Rwanda-backed campaign is a pretext for economic and political influence over eastern Congo.
Rwanda's longtime President Paul Kagame accuses Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi of overlooking the concerns of the ethnic Tutsis and ignoring previous peace agreements.
Mcmakin writes for the Associated Press.
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UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
U.S. envoy airs plan as protesters demand return of hostages
1 of 3 | U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visit Gaza on Friday as part of a fact-finding mission to see firsthand the operations of the U.S.-Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Photo via U.S. Ambassador to Israel/UPI | License Photo Aug. 2 (UPI) -- The United States is demanding the release of 50 remaining hostages Hamas has held in Gaza since 2023, as protesters held a rally in Tel Aviv's "Hostage Square" on Saturday. U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff announced the United States has formulated a plan to return all of the remaining hostages, The Washington Post reported. President Donald Trump "now believes that everybody should come home at once, no piecemeal deals," Witkoff said during the meeting that was recorded and televised in Israel. He told the families that prior cease-fire agreements required exchanges of some hostages for Hamas prisoners being held in Israeli jails. "That doesn't work, and we've tried everything," Witkoff said about U.S. efforts to release hostages who were captured when the U.S.-designated terror organizations Hamas and Islamic Jihad attacked Israeli civilians without provocation on Oct. 7, 2023. The attackers killed about 1,200 Israelis and others, and kidnapped about 250 more. An estimated 30 of the remaining 50 hostages likely are dead, and Witkoff said U.S. officials want half of the remaining 20 hostages released on the first day of a cease-fire, followed by the rest shortly thereafter. Witkoff also said Hamas is ready to disarm and release hostages, but many of the families' representatives are concerned several of the living hostages would not be released if they are not among the first group to return to Israel. Hamas denied it is willing to lay down its arms and said it only would do so upon recognition of a Palestinian state, the BBC reported. Several officials in Arab states during the past week have called on Hamas to lay down its arms and end its control of Gaza. Witkoff met with representatives of about 40 of the hostages' families for two hours after attending a protest in Hostage Square earlier Saturday. The protest occurred after Hamas and Islamic Jihad earlier this week released video footage of hostages Rom Braslavski and Evyator David, along with images of starving Palestinian children, according to a CNN report. International pressure to end the war in Gaza has increased amid reports of Gazans being killed while seeking food at aid sites run by the U.S.-and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The United Nations says at least 1,373 Gazans have been killed while trying to get food and other humanitarian aid since the GHF began distributing meals in late May. Hamas and others blame Israel for the deaths, but Israeli and GHF officials say Hamas is attacking aid workers and killing Gazans who seek aid that it cannot control.
Newsweek
4 hours ago
- Newsweek
France Launches Airdrop of 40 Tons of Humanitarian Aid Into Gaza
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. France began a large-scale airdrop of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip on Friday, deploying four flights from Jordan to deliver 40 tons of food and supplies as the international posture towards the spiraling humanitarian crisis shifted in the face of imminent famine. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the move as part of a plea for Israel to permit full humanitarian access, Reuters reported. The effort is the result of a multinational coalition including Jordan, Germany and the United Arab Emirates. Newsweek reached out to the foreign ministries of France and Israel outside of normal business hours on Saturday afternoon for comment. Why It Matters The French aid initiative comes amid escalating warnings from international organizations of severe malnutrition and starvation among Gaza's 2 million residents. Humanitarian corridors into Gaza remain largely restricted by Israel, with widespread reports of children dying from hunger-related causes. Efforts like France's airdrop highlight the international community's struggle to address what is widely described as a man-made famine, with much of the world's attention focused on blocked or limited ground aid routes. The airdrops follow France's announcement that it intends to formally recognize a Palestinian state, which drew condemnation from some U.S. officials, such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio. However, other European nations have discussed or announced intention to recognize a Palestinian state as well as a means of pressuring Israel to act. Israel, however, has repeatedly rejected claims of forced starvation in Gaza. In May, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied people are starving, saying Israel takes "thousands of prisoners" from Gaza and photographs them, and you "don't see one, not one, emaciated." Israel has repeatedly said that aid deliveries must be delivered in a "safe framework" that does not give supplies to Hamas and notes that the U.S.- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) is bringing food into Gaza. Israel has used aid restrictions as a pressure tactic to bring Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, to negotiate the release of hostages that were taken in its October 7, 2023, attack on the country. A picture taken in northern Gaza's Jabalia shows aid parcels parachuted down following an airdrop above the Israel-besieged Palestinian territory on August 1. A picture taken in northern Gaza's Jabalia shows aid parcels parachuted down following an airdrop above the Israel-besieged Palestinian territory on August 1. Bashar Taleb/AFP via Getty Images What To Know Macron confirmed the start of the operation on Friday, writing in a post on X: "Faced with an urgent humanitarian crisis, we just conducted a food airdrop over Gaza. I thank our Jordanian, Emirati, and German partners for their support, as well as our armed forces for their dedication. But airdrops are not enough. Israel must grant full humanitarian access to address the risk of famine." France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot added in an interview with a local French broadcaster that four flights, each carrying 10 tons of humanitarian supplies, were dispatched from Jordan. France previously participated in European humanitarian airlifts in October 2023 to provide aid to Gaza through Jordan and Egypt at the start of the conflict that erupted after Hamas launched an attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people. Israel retaliated with strikes on the enclave and then sent troops into the region as officials sought to eliminate Hamas. Many nations backed Israel's right to respond to Hamas' attack, but in recent months the growing humanitarian crisis has shifted opinion and prompted outcry over the deteriorating conditions facing civilians. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has simultaneously begun instituting a daily "tactical pause in military activity" for "humanitarian purposes" in the areas of Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Musawi. The practice, first declared last week, was said "to enable the safe passage of UN and humanitarian aid organization convoys delivering and distributing food and medicine to the population across the Gaza Strip." The IDF also said it would begin conducting aid airdrops into Gaza. Faced with an urgent humanitarian crisis, we just conducted a food airdrop over Gaza. I thank our Jordanian, Emirati, and German partners for their support, as well as our armed forces for their dedication. But airdrops are not enough.… — Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) August 1, 2025 What People Are Saying President Donald Trump recently told reporters: "It's terrible what's occurring there. It's a terrible thing. People are very hungry. The United States gave $60 million for food and it's a shame, because I don't see the results of it. And we gave it to people that in theory are watching over it fairly closely. We wanted Israel to watch over it." A U.S. State Department spokesperson previously told Newsweek: "President Trump and Secretary [of State Marco] Rubio want a better life for the people of Gaza and are acutely aware of the dire humanitarian situation. We are supportive of creative efforts to relieve the humanitarian situation in Gaza." Israel's consul general in New York, Ofir Akunis, previously told Newsweek: "There is no deliberate starvation in Gaza, only a deliberate disinformation campaign orchestrated by Hamas and amplified by those who fail to act. Hamas doesn't care about the suffering of children, only about weaponizing their pain to spread hatred against Israel." What Happens Next? The French government and other European partners have signaled they will continue humanitarian airlifts and pressure Israel to open land routes. Macron and other Western leaders called for comprehensive humanitarian access beyond airdrops, which the French leader described as inadequate to alleviate famine risk.
NBC News
11 hours ago
- NBC News
U.S. envoy Witkoff's visit to Gaza criticized as a publicity stunt
Weeks of rising anger over Palestinians starving due to Israel 's offensive and aid restrictions had reached all the way to the White House, with President Donald Trump lamenting the sight of emaciated children on the brink of starvation. On Friday, his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, entered Gaza in a rare visit by high-level U.S. officials to the besieged enclave. Accompanied by the Israeli military, Witkoff visited an aid distribution site in southern Gaza run by the U.S. and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, where hundreds of Palestinians waited desperately behind barbed wire for food. 'Incredible feat!' Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, who accompanied Witkoff, said in a post on X on Friday, after touring GHF's operations and speaking to "folks on the ground." Palestinians and others inside Gaza have criticized the visit as a public relations stunt for GHF, whose aid distribution process has been marked by chaos, looting and deadly shootings, often by Israeli soldiers, that have killed hundreds of hungry Palestinians seeking aid. 'It was a PR stunt, a controlled visit supervised and dictated by the Israeli military,' Ellie Burgos, an American critical care nurse volunteering at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, told the NBC News crew. 'What they saw was not the reality.' Burgos had earlier called for Witkoff to visit Gaza, urging him to witness the conditions on the ground for himself, but felt his limited tour did little to change the situation on the ground. 'Food is still incredibly difficult to find, people are still being shot at aid distribution sites, and violence continues,' she said. On the day of the visit, at least 92 people were killed on Friday across Gaza, including 51 people who were seeking aid, Dr. Mohammed Saqr, Director of Nursing at Nasser Hospital, told NBC News. Mohamed Saddak, 47, who was hoping to collect food for his family of nine, told a NBC News' crew on the ground that tanks had advanced toward him and others as they sought to receive our aid. 'They are constantly shooting at us,' he said, 'firing from tanks, and sometimes by drones.' The IDF did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News on the shootings at aid sites following Witkoff's visit. Israeli officials continued to deny claims of widespread hunger inside Gaza, though in a sign of shifting discourse, top U.S. officials have begun to acknowledge the crisis. 'You've got little kids who are clearly starving to death,' Vice President JD Vance told reporters on Monday. In a post on X, Witkoff said the visit's purpose was to give Trump a "clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza." After Gaza, Witkoff on Saturday visited Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, where families of Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas were demanding that the Israeli government secure a deal to release the remaining hostages. Fifty hostages remain in Gaza, about 20 of whom are believed to be alive. According to a statement by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, Witkoff told them, 'We will get your children home and hold Hamas responsible for any bad acts on their part.' He added, 'We will do what's right for the Gazan people.' The protests came after a video of an Israeli hostage in Gaza, Rom Braslavski, was released by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad on Thursday. A day later, Hamas released a video of another Israeli hostage, Evyatar David, showing him alive but frail. It is unclear when the videos were filmed. 'We cannot endure even one more minute without bringing him home,' Braslavski's cousin Adam Hajaj said in a statement. 'This video tore my family apart!' Huckabee, meanwhile, hailed GHF's distribution of over a million meals a day, which at Gaza's population of roughly 2 million people, averages to half a meal per person per day. GHF stepped in to distribute food in the weeks after Israel lifted its nearly three-month total blockade on all food and supplies entering the enclave. But the aid GHF distributed, alongside some limited quantities by other international organizations, fell far short of the needs of the population. On Sunday, Israel said it was expanding aid access into Gaza after outrage mounted over the widespread starvation and surging deaths from malnutrition. GHF runs four aid sites in Gaza and even though it claims independence from any government, it runs the sites inside Israel's militarized zone with the backing of the Israeli military. Witnesses and aid agencies have decried the aid delivery process, which, according to the U.N., has resulted in deaths of nearly 1,400 people while collecting aid, including 859 in the vicinity of the GHF sites. The Israeli military and the GHF have acknowledged that some shots have been fired but said only as warnings. 'US-backed Israeli forces and private contractors have put in place a flawed, militarized aid distribution system that has turned aid distributions into regular bloodbaths,' New York-based Human Rights Watch said Friday. Burgos's colleague, Dr. Tom Adamekiewicz, urged the diplomats to see "what's happening to the children, the families, to these young boys and women and men that are being basically shot at like rabbits."
