Ugandan army deploys to town in northeast DR Congo amid fears of wider conflict
"Our troops have entered Mahagi town and we are in control," Uganda's defence and military affairs spokesman Felix Kulayigye told French news agency AFP on Sunday.
The deployment was requested by the Congolese army following alleged massacres of civilians carried out by a militia known as the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (Codeco), he said, without providing further details.
Mahagi is in Ituri province, which borders Uganda, where at least 51 people were killed on 10 February by armed men affiliated with Codeco, according to humanitarian and local sources.
Codeco claims it defends the interests of the Lendu community, mainly composed of farmers, against the Hema community, mainly herders.
Uganda already has thousands of troops in other parts of Ituri under an agreement with the Congolese government.
It also operates a joint mission to combat the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels in strongholds near the Ugandan border.
Last month, Uganda announced its troops had "taken control" of Bunia, capital of Ituri.
Uganda's DRC mission under scrutiny amid claims of double dealing
Ituri is just north of the provinces of North and South Kivu, which at the end of January fell under the control of another anti-government group known as the M23, backed by neighbouring Rwanda.
Read more on RFI EnglishRead also:DRC president suggests unity government to respond to the crisis in the eastICC Prosecutor Karim Khan arrives in DRC amid escalating eastern conflictUN accuses M23 of committing 'summary executions' of children in DRC
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
9 minutes ago
- New York Post
Trump's ‘quiet' stance after Alaska meeting with Putin suggests there's still ‘sticking points' to Ukraine peace, officials say
President Trump's vague, post-meeting press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska demonstrated that 'significant roadblocks' stand in the way of peace in Ukraine, several officials suggested Friday. 'That was different,' former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo quipped shortly after the Trump-Putin presser, where neither leader took questions from reporters — or offered details about what a possible cease-fire to halt the two-and-a-half-years-long war would entail. Pompeo, in an interview with Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, noted that Trump is usually 'very straightforward,' 'very forward leaning' and shares 'all the things that he can' with the press — but didn't in Anchorage. 'Clearly he felt in this instance, to deliver on behalf of America, the best thing to do was to be quiet,' the former Trump Cabinet official said. 4 Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo believes that President Trump was deliberately guarded after his meeting with Vladimir Putin. AFP via Getty Images Pompeo insisted that Americans shouldn't 'over-read that' but maintained Trump was 'pretty non-transparent,' suggesting, 'there are significant roadblocks along the way that remain. 'I think there's still significant sticking points along the way,' he added. 'They may have identified interests that they can work their way through, perhaps on economic matters and the like, but it sounds to me like sort of the central issue … Vladimir Putin's willingness to conduct a cease-fire with no condition … it doesn't sound like Putin showed up today ready to concede that core point.' House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast (R-Fla.) argued that Trump seemed to be 'clear-eyed' about negotiations with the Russian president at the summit. 'I think his posture showed that he was clear-eyed about what Vladimir Putin was saying and where Vladimir Putin was wrong,' Mast told Fox News. 'It is just crystal clear that Putin's back is against the wall,' the congressman continued. 'And I think [Trump] demonstrated that clearness with his very first action, before saying a word, with the fact that he flew B2 bombers over [Putin's] head.' 4 Congressman Brian Mast said it's clear Putin's 'back is against the wall.' REUTERS Mast argued the flyover was 'not an accident' and that it sent a message to the Russian strongman. 'It was a signal to [Putin] that when President Trump says, 'Hey, there could be very serious consequences,' he's saying that these serious consequences can be very far reaching,' the Florida Republican said. 'Maybe it's fires that we sell to European countries or other NATO countries that can reach Moscow or St. Petersburg or oil refiners or other things, or maybe it's other weapon systems that we get into the hands of the Ukrainians,' Mast said of potential consequences Russia could face. Razom for Ukraine, a nonprofit humanitarian aid and advocacy organization backing Kyiv in the fight against Russia, said in a statement that the meeting 'reaffirms that the only way to achieve a genuine peace is by pressuring Russia, not by believing Putin's lies that he wants peace.' 'Putin remains the sole obstacle to peace,' CEO Dora Chomiak said in the statement. 4 Mast also argued that the choice to fly B2 bombers was not an accident. AFP via Getty Images Chomiak noted that 'just before Putin landed in Alaska, Russia launched another massive air strike on Ukrainian civilians, reminding us all that he won't end Russia's invasion until he's forced to.' 'The idea that Putin believes there is a positive deal for him in the near future is deeply alarming,' she added, calling on Trump to 'immediately get Ukraine the weapons it needs to save innocent families from Putin's brutal attacks. 'Putin still has hope that he can conquer Ukraine. President Trump must prove him wrong.' Ukrainian Parliament member Oleksandr Merezhko argued that Putin came out the winner of 'the informational war' after the meeting, but appeared as an equal to Trump. 'He used Trump to show that he is not isolated,' Merezhko said, according to the New York Times. 4 Some officials said Putin remains the chief obstacle to peace. REUTERS Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky criticized Putin for repeating the 'same propagandistic clichés about the 'roots of the conflict' that his state television keeps repeating,' according to Reuters. 'The problem is Russian imperialism, not Ukraine's desire to live in freedom,' Lipavsky said. 'If Putin were serious about peace talks, Russia would not have been attacking Ukraine all day today.'
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Alaska meeting was a start, but Putin is still up to his old tricks — and Trump knows it
As the people of Ukraine know, neighborliness is not among Putin's great qualities. Still, it was with a reference to the US and Russia being neighbors that Putin kicked off his conversation with President Trump in Alaska yesterday. On the red carpet at the airport he apparently said to Trump: 'Good afternoon, dear neighbor. Very good to see you in good health and to see you alive.' Advertisement 6 President Donald Trump greets Russian President Vladimir Putin on the tarmac after they arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025. AFP via Getty Images When relaying this at the joint press conference later on, the Russian president commented about his own earlier remarks: 'I think that is very neighborly.' Of course the two leaders were only meeting because of Putin's lack of neighborly qualities. Advertisement Since Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 there have been no face-to-face meetings between the leaders of Russia and the US. Partly because Putin has been unwilling to stop the war he started. And partly because there has been very little for the two to agree on. Putin's invasion has led to more than a million deaths. Perhaps just on his own side. Advertisement Figures vary as to the number of Ukrainians killed since the conflict began. Trump came into office saying that the war would never have started if he had been the US President in 2022. 6 A B-2 bomber (C) and four F-35 fighter jets fly overhead as President Donald Trump greets Russian President Vladimir Putin on the tarmac after they arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025. AFP via Getty Images And yesterday Putin was careful to stress that this was a point of agreement between the two sides. Advertisement He talked about the unresponsiveness of the Biden administration to the warnings he claims to have given them. Still, Trump was careful not to fall for the flattery. Throughout the joint press appearance, while Putin was speaking, Trump maintained his careful, thoughtful listening face. He knows that even a smile in the wrong place can be deadly when dealing with a negotiating partner like Putin. Not just because of the man standing beside him on the stage, but for the world's media camped out in front of them both, many of whom would love to revive the 'Putin puppet' memes about Trump that ran so wild from 2016 to 2020. 6 President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin watch F-35 fighter jets fly overhead at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025. Aware that every gesture, word, and handshake would be pored over relentlessly, Trump set up the meeting and controlled it on his own terms. Putin is a famous manipulator of meetings with world leaders. Advertisement He likes to wrong-foot people or make himself look like the bigger man. On the tarmac Trump was careful to make sure that he didn't greet Putin too warmly, and also not to be too austere. Trump was in Alaska to get a deal done. Whether Putin was there for the same thing they were there to see. Advertisement But in an expert piece of stagecraft an American B-2 stealth bomber flew overhead as Trump and Putin walked to the first photo opportunity. Trump stopped to look up and acknowledge the place, as though to say, 'Gee — who'd have thought it. One of those US planes that just took out the Iranian nuclear reactors. Remember them?' 6 President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, August 15, 2025. REUTERS For two-and-a-half hours the leaders were shut behind closed doors and the fact that they both came out together was a signal in itself. Advertisement Trump had earlier suggested that if they didn't both appear after the meeting then it was because there was nothing to talk about. Trump-watchers remember the Hanoi meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un in 2019. Then, too, there was huge build up and high expectations. But when Trump realized there was no deal to be had with the North Korean dictator, he just walked away. Advertisement That didn't happen yesterday. And for every who believes that jaw-jaw is better than war-war that has to be a good thing. Trump's own remarks at the joint press conference were friendly and formal. 6 US special envoy Steve Witkoff speaks with staff at the conclusion of the Trump/Putin meeting. AFP via Getty Images But he acknowledged that while the talks were a start there was no deal. Because there were still a number of small things and 'one which is the most significant' that the two sides had not agreed on. Get opinions and commentary from our columnists Subscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter! Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters Presumably that one big thing was whether or not Putin should be allowed to keep the territory of Ukraine that his forces have already annexed. This is a point of contention not only for the Ukrainian people, but for America´s NATO allies, who are united in the belief that giving Putin something of Ukraine will not satisfy his appetite for land, but only encourage it. There are those at home in the US who say that this is fever-dream of war-mongers. But America's allies in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Finland, Sweden and nearly all of the rest of Europe fear it. And for them this is not some theoretical, grand-strategy game. It is a matter of whether their countries will be at existential risk of invasion by Putin next. 6 Putin suggested the next meeting between the two leaders should occur in Moscow. AFP via Getty Images Trump had a careful game to balance in Alaska. He managed to encourage Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table. And he did get Putin to say that he is 'sincerely interested' in ending the conflict. Something that Putin described as 'a tragedy.' As though his land invasion was like a typhoon or a tsunami. Just something that happens in nature, but can be cleaned up afterwards. But it was a start. Trump told the world that the talks had been constructive. At the end of the press conference he called Putin 'Vladimir' and Putin suggested that perhaps the next meeting would be in Moscow. 'I could see it possibly happening,' said Trump, jokily. And wherever it happens, if the two leaders can have further meetings which can help bring an end to the war then that could be a good thing. But Trump needs to keep in mind something else Putin said when they weren't behind closed doors. During his lengthy remarks (much longer than Trump's), Putin talked about how much Russia and Ukraine have in common and what bonds and roots they share. Trump should remember that. Putin can pretend to have the best connection with you. And he'll still try to flatten you.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Fresh clashes erupt in Serbian capital after days of unrest
Thousands of anti-government protesters again clashed with police in Serbia's capital on Friday, as days of unrest fuelled fears of a worsening crackdown on a months-long push for early elections. After a tense stand-off between right-wing government loyalists and the larger crowd of protesters, fireworks, tear gas, and stun grenades erupted among the anti-graft demonstrators, according to an AFP journalist in the crowd. It sparked a series of clashes with riot police in central Belgrade on Friday, and marks the fourth straight night of violence between police and rival groups in the Balkan nation. Almost daily protests -- some drawing hundreds of thousands -- have gripped Serbia since November, after a railway station roof collapse crushed 16 people to death. The tragedy became a symbol of deep-rooted corruption in the Balkan nation, as frustrated demands for a transparent investigation grew into calls for early elections. The mostly peaceful demonstrations escalated this week as large groups of pro-government supporters, many masked and some armed with batons and fireworks, attacked protesters. "I don't want to live in a country of police repression," 46-year-old Zeljko from Belgrade told AFP, as he stood with protesters outside government buildings before the violence. A hundred metres away, dozens of government supporters, dressed in black T-shirts, aimed green lasers at the crowd, an apparent attempt to provoke the larger group. "They beat the people and protect criminals with crowbars. I came to say we won't accept that," Zeljko said, referring to alleged police violence against protesters. Dozens have been arrested at rallies around the country in recent days, after violence between the groups ended in the ransacking of the ruling party's offices in the northern city of Novi Sad. While opposition MPs and activists have accused pro-government "thugs" of brutal attacks, sharing images of graphic injuries sustained at the rallies. Several videos shared online showed police striking unarmed protesters with batons. In one video from Thursday night, around 20 officers surround and beat a man while he is on the ground. Police have rejected allegations of excessive force, instead accusing demonstrators of attacking their members, with over 120 officers injured in violence over the past few nights. "All those who have spent these past days spreading lies about police brutality should comment on these figures," Interior Minister Ivica Dacic told journalists on Friday. Similarly, President Aleksandar Vucic has denied that his supporters are behind the violence, instead blaming the anti-corruption movement, which he routinely labels "terrorists". But protesters told AFP they felt police were unfairly protecting Vucic's supporters while targeting the student-led movement for arrest. "We are completely powerless because the police are working with the criminals," said 52-year-old Nevena. "They've hijacked the state and we're trying to take it back." While the protests have so far led to the resignation of the prime minister and the collapse of his cabinet, Vucic remains at the helm of a reshuffled government. oz/al/dc
