File image showing readers looking at a newspaper June 12, 2002 in Nairobi carrying the photograph of Rwandan Felicien Kabuga wanted by the United States. The United States published a “wanted” photograph in Kenyan newspapers of the businessman accused of helping finance the 1994 killings in Rwanda.
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TCS World 10k elite men’s winer Rodrigue Kwizera in Bengaluru on Sunday, 26 April, 2026.
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What is happening in Congo?

| Video Credit:
The Hindu

On January 27, 2025, the rebel group M23 announced they had captured much of the provincial capital of Goma.

Almost immediately, panic set in. Hundreds of thousands of residents scrambled to escape—some fled deeper into Congo, while others crossed into Rwanda.

By January 28, the situation worsened when M23 had taken control of Goma’s airport. Unable to hold their ground, the Congolese army and their allies laid down their weapons. And just two days later, by January 30, Goma was fully in the hands of the rebels.

What is happening in Congo? Why is it happening? Who are the M23 rebels? And what does this mean for the region?

Presentation: Sharmada Venkatasubramanian

Script: Shikha Kumari

Editing: Aniket Singh Chauhan

Videography: Thamodharan B.

Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo:

Rwanda-backed rebels on Monday claimed they captured Goma, the largest city in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the United Nations reported “mass panic” among its 2 million residents. The city’s capture came after a 48-hour deadline imposed by M23 rebels for the Congolese army to surrender their weapons expired. 

The rebel alliance, spearheaded by the ethnic Tutsi-led M23 militia, announced the coup d’etat in a statement, urging residents of Goma to remain calm. Meanwhile, the government in Congo said the rebel advance was a “declaration of war,” according to a report by the Associated Press. 

What is Happening In Congo

M23 fighters and 3,000 to 4,000 Rwandan soldiers had been laying siege to Goma for several days, advancing in the heart of the mineral-rich region and threatening to dramatically worsen one of Africa’s longest wars and further displace civilians.

The Congolese armed forces appear to have been overwhelmed by the offensive, and Uruguay’s army said in a statement that some units had begun to surrender by handing over their weapons to UN peacekeepers in Goma.

According to a report by AFP, large explosions and gunfire were heard in central Goma on Monday morning. As chaos descended on the city, there was also a mass prison break from a torched prison which resulted reportedly in “deaths”.

Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Congo River Alliance that includes the M23, told Reuters on Monday that his forces were in control of Goma and that army soldiers were laying down arms.

Meanwhile, the Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya posted a video on X, calling for the protection of civilians and saying that the country is “in a war situation where the news is changing.”

On Sunday, The UN Security Council held crisis talks with the United States, France and Britain condemning what they said was Rwanda’s backing of the rebel advance. 

But, Rwanda dismissed statements that “did not provide any solutions” and accused the Congolese government of sabotaging negotiations with the M23 and supporting Hutu militiamen linked to the 1994 genocide.

Kinshasa rejects these allegations. Congo’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner called on the Security Council to impose a “total embargo on the export of all minerals labelled as Rwandan, in particular gold”.

Meanwhile, the UN staff and their families were evacuated to Rwanda on Monday, where 10 buses were waiting to pick them up. The border between Rwanda and DRC near the Goma remained closed on Monday, as the United States, France, the UK and Germany called on their citizens to leave the city.

DRC Conflict

The eastern borderlands of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are a tinderbox of rebel and militia fiefdoms stemming from two regional wars after Rwanda’s 1994 genocide when Hutu extremists murdered close to 1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

The M23 (or March 23 Movement), the latest in a long line of Tutsi-led rebel movements backed by Rwanda, captured Goma in 2012 but withdrew days later after an agreement brokered by neighbouring nations.

Congo has more than 100 armed groups, mainly in the east of the central African nation of 100 million people which is roughly the size of Western Europe and has plentiful mineral supplies in the sights of Chinese and Western companies.

According to a United Nations report, over a third of the population of North Kivu province, where Goma is located, is currently displaced. 

About M23 Rebels 

The 2012 fall of Goma led to the deployment of a new offensive-minded U.N. force, an overhaul of the Congolese army, and diplomatic pressure on Rwanda, leading to the M23’s defeat the next year and a deal calling for its demobilisation.

But the group never fully disarmed and launched a fresh offensive in 2022 that has seen it capture vast swathes of mineral-rich North Kivu province, including lucrative mines that produce coltan, which is used in smartphones.

Well-trained and professionally armed, M23 says it exists to protect Congo’s Tutsi population from the Congolese government and ethnic Hutu militias. U.N. experts say Rwanda has deployed 3,000-4,000 troops and provided significant firepower, including missiles and snipers, to support the M23.

The rebels’ advance since the start of the year has forced hundreds of thousands from their homes, on top of 3 million displaced in east Congo in 2024, according to the UN.
 

Image used for representative purpose only.
| Photo Credit: AP

The United States government completed an initial shipment of vaccine doses and therapeutic drugs for Marburg disease to Rwanda on Oct. 4, Thierry Roels, U.S. CDC Country Director in Rwanda told Reuters on Saturday (October 5, 2024).

The U.S. government is also working closely with international partners and Rwanda’s Ministry of Health on the start of clinical trials to evaluate investigational countermeasures, he said.

Mr. Roels added that the U.S. government was considering additional shipments that can supply the clinical trials, but did not say how many doses had been delivered on Friday.

Rwanda’s first outbreak of the viral hemorrhagic fever was detected in late September, with 36 cases and 11 deaths reported so far. Marburg has a fatality rate as high as 88%.

Rwandan Health Minister Sabin Nsanziman said on Thursday that the country will start clinical trials of experimental vaccines and treatments for the disease.

Four vaccine candidates have been evaluated for potential use in trials by WHO, but only one, made by the Sabin Vaccine Institute non-profit, has data from early-stage human trials showing it is safe and led to an immune response. Further testing of the vaccines outside of outbreak settings is not possible because of the risks involved.

The Sabin Vaccine Institute said on Saturday it had delivered around 700 doses of its vaccine to Rwanda, to be used in a trial targeting frontline workers, including healthcare professionals.

The non-profit institute also said it plans to supply additional vaccines pending a request from the Rwanda government and authorization from U.S. Center for the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).

Gilead Sciences said on Thursday it would donate about 5,000 vials of its antiviral drug remdesivir to the Rwanda Medical Supply for emergency use in response to the outbreak.

Marburg symptoms include high fever, severe headaches and malaise within seven days of infection and later severe nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. It is transmitted to humans by fruit bats, and then spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of those infected.

In this Oct. 8, 2014 photo, a medical worker from the Infection Prevention and Control unit wearing full protective equipment carries a meal to an isolation tent housing a man being quarantined after coming into contact in Uganda with a carrier of the Marburg Virus, at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya.
| Photo Credit: AP

Rwanda says eight people have died so far from the Ebola-like and highly contagious Marburg virus, just days after the country declared an outbreak of the deadly hemorrhagic fever that has no authorized vaccine or treatment.

Like Ebola, the Marburg virus originates in fruit bats and spreads between people through close contact with the bodily fluids of infected individuals or with surfaces, such as contaminated bed sheets. Without treatment, Marburg can be fatal in up to 88% of people who fall ill with the disease.

Rwanda, a landlocked country in central Africa, declared an outbreak on Friday and a day later the first six deaths were reported.

So far 26 cases have been confirmed, and eight of the sickened people have died, Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana said on Sunday night.

The public has been urged to avoid physical contact to help curb the spread. Some 300 people who came into contact with those confirmed to have the virus have also been identified, and an unspecified number of them have been put in isolation facilities.

Most of the affected are healthcare workers across six out of 30 districts in the country.

“Marburg is a rare disease,” Mr. Nsanzimana told journalists. “We are intensifying contact tracing and testing to help stop the spread.”

The Minister said the source of the disease has not been determined yet. A person infected with the virus can take between three days and three weeks to show symptoms, he added.

Symptoms include fever, muscle pains, diarrhea, vomiting and, in some cases, death through extreme blood loss.

The World Health Organization was scaling up its support and will work with Rwandan authorities to help stop the spread, WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Saturday on the social media platform X.

The U.S Embassy in Rwanda’s capital of Kigali has urged its staff to work remotely and avoid visiting offices.

Marburg outbreaks and individual cases have in the past been recorded in Tanzania, Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Congo, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda and Ghana, according to the WHO.

The rare virus was first identified in 1967 after it caused simultaneous outbreaks of disease in laboratories in Marburg, Germany, and Belgrade, Serbia. Seven people died who were exposed to the virus while conducting research on monkeys.

Separately, Rwanda has so far reported six cases of mpox, a disease caused by a virus related to smallpox but that typically causes milder symptoms. Mpox, previously known as monkeypox because it was first seen in research monkeys, has also affected several other African countries in what the WHO has called a global health emergency.

Rwanda launched an mpox vaccination campaign earlier this month, and more vaccines are expected to arrive in the country. Neighboring Congo has so far reported most of the cases of mpox, the epicenter of the emergency.

Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame and First Lady Jeannette Kagame attend his swearing-in ceremony after a landslide win in last month’s election at the Amahoro Stadium, Gasabo District of Kigali, Rwanda, August 11, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Rwanda’s all-powerful President Paul Kagame was sworn in Sunday for a fourth term, saying regional peace was a “priority” in the face of ongoing conflict in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Mr. Kagame swept to victory in elections last month with a staggering 99.18% of the vote, giving him another five years in office.

Several dozen heads of state and other dignitaries from African nations joined the inauguration ceremony at a packed 45,000-seat stadium in Kigali, where many were dressed in the green, yellow and blue colours of the Rwandan national flag.

The outcome of the July 15 poll was never in doubt for the iron-fisted Mr. Paul Kagame, who has ruled the small African nation since the 1994 genocide, as de facto leader and then president.

Rights activists said the 66-year-old’s overwhelming victory was a stark reminder of the oppressive regime in Rwanda, with only two candidates authorised to run against him and several prominent critics barred.

Kigali is also accused of stoking instability in the mineral-rich east of the DRC, its much larger neighbour, by backing M23 rebels fighting Kinshasa’s armed forces.

“Peace in our region is a priority for Rwanda yet it has been lacking, particularly in eastern DRC,” Mr. Kagame said in his inauguration address.

“But peace cannot be delivered by anyone or from anywhere no matter how powerful if the party most concerned does not do what is needed,” he said in an apparent barb targeting Kinshasa.

“Angola’s President Joao Lourenco, among those who attended Sunday’s ceremony, was due to have private talks with Mr. Kagame on a DRC ceasefire deal hammered out last month,” the Angolan presidency said.

Luanda (Angola’s capital) brokered the agreement after a meeting between the foreign ministers of DRC and Rwanda.

But on August 4, the day the ceasefire was supposed to take effect, M23 rebels – who have seized territory in the east since launching a new offensive at the end of 2021 – captured a town on the border with Uganda.

A recent U.N. experts report said 3,000-4,000 Rwandan soldiers are fighting alongside M23 and that Kigali had “de facto control” of the group’s operations.

Questioned repeatedly on the issue, Mr. Kagame has not explicitly denied the presence of Rwandan forces in DRC, instead pointing to the “persecution” of the Tutsi minority and the risk of instability on Rwanda’s border.

– ‘Climate of fear’ –

Mr. Kagame is credited with rebuilding a ruined nation after the genocide, when Hutu extremists unleashed 100 days of vicious bloodletting targeting the Tutsi minority, killing around 800,000 people, mainly Tutsis but also Hutu moderates.

But rights activists and opponents say he rules in a climate of fear, crushing any dissent with intimidation, arbitrary detentions, killings and enforced disappearances. With 65% of the population under 30, Mr. Kagame is the only leader most Rwandans have ever known.

“I proudly cast my vote for President Kagame and made it a priority to be here today to witness this historic inauguration,” said Tania Iriza, a 27-year-old trader, one of the tens of thousands who turned out for the ceremony. “His leadership has been transformative for our nation. Under his leadership, Rwanda has risen from our tragic past and forged a path towards prosperity, unity and innovation.”

Mr. Kagame has won every presidential election he has contested, each time with more than 93% of the ballot.

In 2015, he oversaw controversial constitutional amendments that shortened presidential terms to five years from seven but reset the clock for the Rwandan leader, allowing him to potentially rule until 2034.

The story so far: On July 15, Rwanda held its fourth presidential election since the 1994 Tutsi genocide. Partial results released by Rwanda’s National Electoral Commission (NEC) reveal overwhelming support for President Paul Kagame. With 79% of the votes counted, Kagame has secured over 99% of the votes. Opposition leaders Habineza Frank of the Democratic Green Party and Independent candidate Mpayimana Phillippe secured less than one per cent of the votes each.

How did Rwanda politically progress?

On 6 April, 1994, Rwanda’s Hutu President Juvenal Habyarimana was killed in a plane crash, allegedly by the Tutsi-led armed group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). Between April 7 and July 15, 1994, the state-sponsored Hutu armed group massacred over 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in revenge attacks.

In 1994, the RPF defeated Rwanda’s government, ended the genocide and restored law and order. The RPF took control of Rwanda and established a transitional government of both Hutus and Tutsis, which ruled from 1994 to 1995. Between 1996 and 2002, Rwanda’s leadership was preoccupied with fighting Hutu armed groups in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and could not prioritise nation building.

In 2003, Rwanda adopted a new Constitution and became a semi-presidential republic. The same year, multi-party elections were held for the first time. Kagame was elected as Rwanda’s President. Under his leadership, the RPF rapidly consolidated power, winning landslide majorities since 2003. In 2015, the government amended the constitution through a referendum, enabling Kagame to rule till 2034 and strengthening the RPF’s dominance.

What has been the role of Kagame?

A U.S.-trained military officer of Tutsi ethnicity, Kagame joined the RPF in 1990. As the RPF’s leader, Kagame led the armed group to end the genocide. Between 1994 and 2000, he was Rwanda’s de facto leader, first as Vice President and then as Acting President.

According to Rwanda’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the economy grew by over eight per cent annually under Kagame’s leadership. Between 2000 and 2017, his targeted social welfare schemes lifted over one million people out of poverty, while life expectancy rose from 29 to 67 years. However, Western observers criticised his government as authoritarian for suppressing opposition forces and civil liberties. In 2024, Freedom House accused his government of surveillance, torture, arbitrary detentions, and assassinations of dissents.

What were the issues before Rwanda’s July 2024 elections?

According to the South African Broadcasting Corporation and Al Jazeera, Rwanda’s impressive development record under Kagame was crucial in the 2024 elections, attracting young and first-time voters to the RPF. During his massive rallies, Kagame promised to continue Rwanda’s economic performance and equitable growth, which resonated with the youth’s aspirations for upward mobility.

Women’s empowerment was another vital election issue, with women voters appreciating Kagame’s role in increasing women’s representation in the country’s legislative assembly, the Chamber of Deputies (60% in 2023) and their participation in the labour force (55% in 2023 according to the World Bank).

Civil society organisations raised concerns about political pluralism before the elections. During May-June, the National Election Commission barred opposition leaders and outspoken Kagame critics Victoire Ingabire and Diane Rwigara from contesting for sowing “divisionism” and inadequate paperwork. According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the government imprisoned around 20 journalists since 2000 on unlawful grounds. These developments reflected the country’s declining democratic credentials. Since Kagame held the elections after banning multiple opposition groups, civil society organisations said the election was unfair because voters did not have a genuine choice of alternative candidates. The ongoing civil war in the DRC was another pressing issue, with the DRC and the United Nations accusing Rwanda of supporting the M23 armed group.

What do the election results convey?

Kagame’s victory conveys wide-ranging support for his programmes of economic progress and political stability. Given that Rwanda is still a developing country, Kagame’s campaign resonated with the electorate’s aspirations for economic freedom and reaffirmed his successful record of providing the stability needed for development.

Kagame’s victory demonstrates the effectiveness of his party machinery, with opposition candidates struggling to draw crowds. However, Kagame was virtually unchallenged, with opposition candidates receiving one per cent of votes combined, reflecting the RPF’s efforts to suppress genuine political competition. The suppression of the candidates also reflected Kagame’s authoritarian tendencies. The pro-government decisions of the National Election Commission reflected the absence of robust democratic institutions.

Does the Rwanda election hold any significance for Africa’s democratic process?

South Africa, Senegal, Chad, and Rwanda have completed their general elections, others are heading to the polls. While South Africa and Senegal had free and fair elections, polls in Chad and Rwanda saw incumbents controlling opposition forces.

While Rwanda enjoys an impressive developmental record, its authoritarian tendencies and democratic deficits reflect the larger African trends of democratic backsliding and electoral malpractices. Since the RPF was initially an armed group that became the country’s ruling party, its political dominance reflects the persistent issue of militarisation of civilian politics that affects African states like Gabon and Guinea. Kagame’s victory will mark continued political stability, but its military involvement in the DRC will contribute to regional instability.

(Ayan Datta is a research intern at the Africa Studies programme at the National Institute of Advanced Studies and is pursuing a post-graduate degree at the University of Hyderabad)

A voter casts her ballot at a polling station in Kigali during Rwanda’s presidential and parliamentary polls.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Millions of Rwandans were voting in presidential and parliamentary elections on July 15, with the African nation’s leader Paul Kagame widely expected to cruise to victory and extend his iron-fisted rule for another five years.

Rwanda’s de facto leader since the end of the 1994 genocide and President since 2000, Mr. Kagame faces only two challengers after several prominent critics were barred from standing.

University student Gatangaza Bwiza Nelly, among two million first-time voters, said she had “been waiting for this day anxiously.” “I believe that the results will be the same as the results in the previous election. It is quite obvious,” the 21-year-old said.

The lineup is a carbon copy of the last election in 2017, when Mr. Kagame obliterated his rivals with almost 99% of the vote, and there is little doubt about the outcome this year.

Frank Habineza, leader of the Democratic Green Party, and independent Philippe Mpayimana were the only two candidates approved to run against Mr. Kagame out of eight applicants.

With 65% of the population aged under 30, Mr. Kagame — who is running for a fourth term — is the only leader most Rwandans have ever known. The 66-year-old is credited with rebuilding a traumatised nation after Hutu extremists unleashed a genocide targeting Tutsis.

More than nine million Rwandans are registered to cast their ballot across 2,433 polling stations, with the presidential race being held at the same time as legislative elections for the first time.

A small landlocked African nation playing in the big league: with military might, image branding and political influence, Rwanda under President Paul Kagame has become a major strategic player with tentacles spread far and wide.

De facto leader since the 1994 genocide and running for a fourth term as President in elections on Monday, the iron-fisted Kagame has established a sphere of influence far outweighing Rwanda’s size to develop the country and entrench his own power base.

Unlike many other African nations, “Rwanda is pursuing a real foreign policy strategy”, says Paul-Simon Handy, East Africa director at the Institute for Security Studies.

This strategy is similar to “smart power”, says Mr. Handy, combining hard power – the use of military and economic means for influence – and soft power.

The Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) is one of the pillars of this policy, though its role is contradictory.

The Democratic Republic of Congo has for years accused its neighbour of fomenting instability in the east and supporting armed groups, including the Tutsi-led M23, deploying troops and allegedly seeking to plunder its mineral wealth.

A recent UN experts report said 3,000-4,000 Rwandan soldiers are fighting alongside M23 rebels and that Kigali had “de facto control” of the group’s operations.

Questioned repeatedly on the issue, Mr. Kagame has not explicitly denied the presence of Rwandan forces in DRC, instead pointing to the “persecution” of the Tutsi minority and the risk of instability on Rwanda’s border.

“By nature, Rwanda’s security posture has always been defensive, not offensive. We only act when trouble is brought on us,” he said this month.

Its murky role in the DRC has however cost Kigali some financial support from the West, which since 2012-2013 has cut development aid and investment.

‘Africa’s policeman’

At the same time, Mr. Kagame has established his Army as the “policeman of Africa”.

Since 2024, the RDF has taken part in numerous UN peacekeeping missions. With 5,894 men deployed as of March 31, Rwanda is the fourth largest contributor, with forces in South Sudan and the Central African Republic.

“By participating in and leading peacekeeping and unilateral military missions, Rwanda has significantly enhanced its global image and strategic relevance beyond its historical association with the 1994 genocide,” said Federico Donelli, assistant professor of international relations at the University of Trieste.

It also reaps a financial windfall. The UN pays contributors $1,428 per soldier per month, meaning Kigali receives more than $100 million a year.

The RDF has also been deployed under bilateral deals with, for example, CAR and Mozambique.

These military commitments are often accompanied by economic agreements, offering development opportunities for Rwanda, which does not have its own natural resources or industrial base, and is reliant on international funding.

In CAR, Rwandans enjoy privileged investment access to sectors such as mining, agriculture and construction, often led by Crystal Ventures, an investment firm owned by Kagame’s ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).

Diplomatic lever

These deals also represent a valuable diplomatic lever to ward off sanction threats over the DRC or its dismal human rights record.

“Rwanda has never hidden its threat to withdraw from peacekeeping operations if it were to be sanctioned,” Mr. Handy said.

“It has proven its effectiveness: DRC efforts to have Rwanda sanctioned for its support for the M23 were unsuccessful.”

Mr. Donelli said Kagame has an ability to read global dynamics. “He knows that Western actors are increasingly reluctant to get involved in African crises,” he added.

“In an increasingly chaotic regional context, he is using Rwanda’s role as a reliable partner in crises to reduce Western criticism and divert attention from domestic issues such as the lack of democratic development, centralisation of power and human rights concerns.”

Mr. Kagame is accused of authoritarian rule, muzzling the media and political opposition, while according to the World Bank, almost half the population lives on less than $2.15 a day.

But he has sought to burnish Rwanda’s image abroad — selling itself as an African flagship for new technology, a hub for conferences and major sporting events, and a leading ecotourism destination.

Sponsorship deals have seen “Visit Rwanda” emblazoned on the shirts of European football teams Arsenal, PSG and Bayern Munich.

Rwanda has also boosted its presence in global organisations.

In 2009, it became a member of the Commonwealth and hosted its 2022 summit, while a former Minister is head of the International Organisation of La Francophonie (French-speaking union), and another serves as deputy chair of the African Union Commission.

Mr. Handy says Rwanda’s “smart power” was illustrated by the controversial deal to take in asylum seekers deported from Britain.

Widely condemned by rights groups and blocked by the U.K. courts, the scheme has now been scrapped by Britain’s new government.