Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC): The recent peace agreement signed between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda fails to address justice for the victims of serious crimes by not including any provisions aimed at holding their perpetrators to account, Amnesty International said today. Without addressing impunity for the horrific crimes committed in eastern DRC, the agreement missed an opportunity to decisively tackle a long-standing driver of the conflict, said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.
According to African Press Organization, the human rights situation in eastern DRC has deteriorated since Rwandan-backed M23 fighters entered the country in November 2021 and went on to capture large areas of North and South Kivu provinces. The United Nations (UN) Group of Experts and Human Rights Watch have documented Rwanda’s support of the M23, the latest in a series of armed groups operating in DRC that Rwanda has backed since the late 1990s.
On 27 January 2025, M23 declared that it had captured Goma after residents and displaced people fled to safety in other parts of DRC or neighbouring countries. On 16 February, M23 seized Bukavu, a key trading hub and capital of South Kivu province. The UN confirmed cases of summary killings and had received reports of arbitrary arrests and detentions, degrading treatment, and alleged forced returns of Congolese young men fleeing violence in neighbouring countries.
Amnesty International has documented how the M23 killed, tortured, and forcibly disappeared detainees, held some as hostages, and subjected them to inhumane conditions at detention sites in Goma and Bukavu, which may amount to war crimes. The Wazalendo are a loose coalition of armed groups fighting the M23 and backed by the Congolese army. The UN and other human rights organizations have documented human rights abuses committed by the Wazalendo.
On 27 June 2025, Rwanda and DRC signed a peace deal in Washington, DC, aimed at ending the conflict between the two neighbours.