Rwanda blames UN MONUSCO for DDR failures as M23 blocks Doha ceasefire

Rwanda’s foreign minister Olivier Nduhungirehe accused the United Nations peacekeeping mission MONUSCO of serious shortcomings in the disarmament, demobilisation, repatriation and reintegration (DDRR) process for former FDLR combatants. He said that 81 people repatriated by MONUSCO were later identified as Congolese civilians with no Rwandan origin, and that many had pretended to be ex‑combatants to obtain benefits. MONUSCO responded that it was not present for the transfer of 39 individuals on 29 July and was not involved in that return.

At the same time, the M23/RDF coalition in eastern DR Congo expelled a FARDC officer, preventing the deployment of the joint verification mechanism agreed in the Doha cease‑fire. The move blocked a neutral committee of three Congolese, three M23 and three MONUSCO officers, undermining the cease‑fire monitoring process and drawing criticism from the United Nations, the African Union, Qatar and the United States.