DRC Denies Rwandan Claims of Airspace Violation, Calls It ‘Attempt to Blind Public Opinion’

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) armed forces have strongly refuted allegations made by the Rwandan army that Congolese aircraft violated Rwandan airspace. A statement issued by Lieutenant Colonel Guillaume Njike Kaiko, spokesperson for the military governor of North Kivu, declared that the accusations are aimed at misleading the public. He insisted that no aircraft belonging to the DRC army or its allies were airborne in North Kivu. This statement comes in the wake of attacks launched by M23 Rwandan rebels on DRC positions in Kikubo, Lubero territory, on Sunday. The M23 rebels issued a statement on August 24 claiming that the DRC army had deployed troops around areas under their control, attempting to justify their attack. The Congolese army views these accusations as manipulation, emphasizing that they constitute a violation of the Luanda (Angola) ceasefire agreement. To address the situation, the Congolese army announced they will formally engage the Joint Verification Mechanism and the Ad Hoc Verification Mechanism to shed light on these actions and ensure appropriate consequences.