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| See also: | Other events of 2024 List of years in Rwanda | ||||
Events in the year 2024 in Rwanda .
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| See also: | Other events of 2024 List of years in Rwanda | ||||
Events in the year 2024 in Rwanda .
The earliest known human settlements in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been dated back to the Middle Stone Age, approximately 90,000 years ago. The first real states, such as the Kongo, the Lunda, the Luba and Kuba, appeared south of the equatorial forest on the savannah from the 14th century onwards.
The Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War or the Great War of Africa, was a major conflict that began on 2 August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), just over a year after the First Congo War. The war initially erupted when Congolese president Laurent-Désiré Kabila turned against his former allies from Rwanda and Uganda, who had helped him seize power. Eventually, the conflict expanded, drawing in nine African nations and approximately 25 armed groups, making it one of the largest wars in African history.
The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation in East Africa. The EAC's membership consists of eight states: Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the Republics of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania. William Ruto, the president of Kenya, is the current EAC chairman. The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on 7 July 2000. The main objective of the EAC is to foster regional economic integration.
Congolese history in the 2000s has primarily revolved around the Second Congo War (1998–2003) and the empowerment of a transitional government.
The Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including neighboring Ituri province, there are more than 120 different armed groups active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently, some of the most active rebel groups include the Allied Democratic Forces, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo, the March 23 Movement, and many local Mai Mai militias. In addition to rebel groups and the governmental FARDC troops, a number of national and international organizations have intervened militarily in the conflict, including the United Nations force known as MONUSCO, and an East African Community regional force.
Laurent Nkunda is a former General in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and is the former warlord operating in the province of North-Kivu, and a officer of the Tutsi-dominated government of neighbouring Rwanda. Nkunda, who is himself a Congolese-born Tutsi, commanded the former DRC troops of the 81st and 83rd Brigades of the DRC Army. He speaks English, French, Swahili, Kinyarwanda, Lingala and Kinande. On January 22, 2009, he was put under house arrest in Gisenyi when he was called for a meeting to plan a joint operation between the Congolese and Rwandan militaries.
John Kabango Rucyahana is a former Rwandan Anglican bishop, having been Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Shyira.
The M23 rebellion was an armed conflict in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), that occurred between the March 23 Movement and government forces between 4 April 2012 and 7 November 2013. It ended when a peace agreement was made among eleven African nations, and the M23 troops surrendered in Uganda. The rebellion was part of continued fighting in the region after the formal end of the Second Congo War in 2003. The conflict reignited in late 2021 after rebel "general" Sultani Makenga and 100 rebel fighters attacked the border town of Bunagana but failed. A few months later, with a much larger force, the rebels of the M23 movement renewed their attack and captured Bunagana.
The March 23 Movement, often abbreviated as M23 and also known as the Congolese Revolutionary Army, is a Congolese Tutsi-led rebel military group. Based in eastern areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), it operates mainly in the province of North Kivu, which borders both Uganda and Rwanda. The M23 rebellion of 2012 to 2013 against the DRC government led to the displacement of large numbers of people. On 20 November 2012, M23 took control of Goma, a provincial capital with a population of a million people, but it was requested to evacuate it by the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region because the DRC government had finally agreed to negotiate. In late 2012, Congolese troops, along with UN troops, retook control of Goma, and M23 announced a ceasefire and said that it wanted to resume peace talks.
General Sultani Makenga is a Congolese rebel leader and the military chief of the March 23 Movement (M23), a revolutionary group based in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Makenga is an ethnic Tutsi and was raised in North Kivu. He fought for the Rwandan Patriotic Front during the Rwandan Civil War.
The United Nations Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) is a military formation which constitutes part of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). It was authorized by the United Nations Security Council on 28 March 2013 through Resolution 2098. Although it is not the first instance in which the use of force was authorized by the UN, the Force Intervention Brigade is the first UN peacekeeping operation specifically tasked to carry out targeted offensive operations to "neutralize and disarm" groups considered a threat to state authority and civilian security. In this case, the main target was the M23 militia group, as well as other Congolese and foreign rebel groups. While such operations do not require the support of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), the Force Intervention Brigade often acts in unison with the FARDC to disarm rebel groups.
The 2013 Kivu offensive refers to actions in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by the Congolese army, which captured two towns from M23 rebels: Kiwanja and Buhumba, both of which are in the Rutshuru area of North Kivu province, near the Rwandan border.
The following lists events that happened during 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In late March 2022, the March 23 Movement (M23), supported by Rwanda, launched an offensive in North Kivu against the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and MONUSCO. The fighting displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians and caused renewed tensions between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda.
Beginning in 2022, tensions heightened between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, marking a significant breakdown in relations between the two countries. Amid this, Rwandan forces have crossed into the DRC multiple times, usually fighting alongside Congolese rebels.
Francois Habitegeko is a Rwandan politician. He is the governor of the Western Province and former governor of the Northern Province of Rwanda.
The Kishishe massacre occurred from November 29 to December 1, 2022, in the North Kivu village of Kishishe in the Rutshuru Territory in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The March 23 Movement, a predominantly Tutsi armed group, summarily killed at least 131 civilians in Kishishe following clashes with local militias, according to a preliminary United Nations investigation. At the same time, the Kinshasa authorities had previously reported approximately 300 fatalities. The attack also resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people who were forced to flee to other locations such as Kanyabayonga, Kibirizi, Kashala, Kirima, Nyanzale, Kashalira, Bambu, and Kitchanga. Some victims also sought refuge in neighboring countries due to the ongoing violence and instability in the region.
Modern relations between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda have origins that date back to the European colonial era. Sharing a border that is 221 km in length, the two countries were both colonial possessions of Belgium between 1919 and 1960, and were impacted by the two world wars. Both Rwanda and the Congo experienced violent upheavals during their first years of independence, with the Congo being left with a weak central authority, and Rwanda dealing with periodic raids and incursions from expelled Tutsi rebels in the east of the Congo.
Events of the year 2024 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Between January 24 and 26, 2023, M23 rebels and Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) soldiers fought over the city of Kitshanga. The battle was part of the renewed M23 offensive, and ended on January 26 with M23 forces capturing the city. Civilians accused both M23 and FARDC-aligned militias of war crimes during and after the battle.
