The Congo puts a price at the head of the M-23 guerrillas: five million dollars

The aforementioned statement announces that a reward of five million dollars is offered “to whom it helps to detain the convicted Corneille Nangaa, Bertrand Bisimwa and Sultani Makenga.”

In addition, a bonus of four million dollars will be granted for any information that leads to the arrest of Perrot Luwara and Irenge Baelenge, among other people sought.

“Those who provide reliable information will benefit from an effective guarantee of the payment of the reward, as well as the full protection of their identity and personal data,” concludes the statement.

The rubber taking (capital of Kivu del Norte, in RDC) and Bukavu (capital of South Kivu) by the M-23 continues to wreak havoc in the civilian population. In both cities “a tense calm reigns,” a member of the United Nations Mission in Congo (Monusco) tells ABC.

It is calculated since the total number of deaths since last January is about 8,500 people, many of them civilians, according to sources from the Congolese government.

While he continues his career to take the east of the Congo, The M-23 is sowing panic. There are already several videos disseminated by social networks where you can see how entire families flee with their young or young children so that they are not forcedly recruited and even adjusted by the M-23.

It is estimated that there are already more than 700,000 people displaced by this conflict to refugee fields on the border with countries such as Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, mainly.

Insecurity has caused a massive exodus: thousands of Congolese continue to flee to Burundi and Tanzania, while others are heading towards Kalemie, the capital of the province of Tanganyika, rich in essential mineral resources (casiterite, gold, coltan, emeralds, silver and copper).

One of these refugees, mother of a family with 3 children, tells from the field of snack refugees (Burundi) – where more than 40,000 Congoleños live – who are living «a true Calvary, since the lack of hygiene, electricity, water and food must be added the corruption that exists in these camps. To get anything you have to pay the police. Sexual violence is another of the serious dangers to which women and girls are subjected.

In his escape from Bukavu, members of the Congolese Armed Forces (Fardc) and the Wazalendo guerrillas-who face M-23-have abandoned hundreds of weapons that have ended in the hands of children, adolescents and former presidiaries who are sowing panic in many neighborhoods of the city.

The M-23 currently controls the capitals of the two border provinces with Rwanda and rich in minerals such as gold and coltan, which has 80 % of world reserves. It is a key mineral for the manufacture of smartphones, tablets or batteries for electric cars.

Right now, international analysts fear an escalation of the conflict at the regional level if the M-23 continues to attach Congolese territory in the east of the country. After conquering Minova and Bukavu, the M-23 has directed its troops to Uvira, second city of Kivu del Sur.

At the moment, the Western powers that support Rwanda – among those found by the United States and the United Kingdom – have failed to redirect the conflict after a failed attempt to stop the fire last month.