Latest news with #MyriamFavier
15-05-2025
- Politics
Red Cross escorts over 1,000 disarmed Congolese soldiers from rebel-controlled city to capital
GOMA, Congo -- Over a thousand disarmed Congolese soldiers and police officers, along with their families, have safely been transferred from the rebel-controlled city of Goma in eastern Congo to the capital over the last two weeks, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced Thursday. The soldiers and police officers had been taking refuge at the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Congo's base since January, when the decades-long conflict in eastern Congo escalated as the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic city of Goma. The Red Cross said in a statement it helped escort the 1,359 disarmed members of the government forces and their families from Goma to the capital Kinshasa between April 30 and May 15th, traveling nearly 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) and across a front line. The ICRC said it accompanied several convoys on the road, while transport by helicopter and plane was carried out by the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in Congo and the country's armed forces. 'The operation has been a success, it has enabled those transported to Kinshasa to get back in touch with their families and, we hope, will reduce tensions in the city of Goma,' Myriam Favier, head of the ICRC's sub-delegation in Goma, said. The transfer of the government forces was the result of an agreement reached between the Congolese government, the rebels, the U.N. mission and the ICRC, which was called upon as a neutral intermediary, the Red Cross said, adding that it made sure that all the individuals had consented to being transported in the convoys. For security reasons, no media outlets were allowed to film or photograph the operation. The news of the successful transfer comes amid persistent tensions in eastern Congo, where fighting between Congo's army and M23 continues, despite both sides having agreed to work toward a truce last month. Eastern Congo has been in and out of crisis for decades. Dozens of armed groups are vying for territory in the mining region near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world's largest humanitarian crises with more than 7 million people displaced, including 100,000 who fled homes this year. The M23 rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Congo's capital, Kinshasa, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the west. On Thursday, Congolese authorities in eastern Congo. in the resource-rich region. ——- Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Red Cross escorts over 1,000 disarmed Congolese soldiers from rebel-controlled city to capital
GOMA, Congo (AP) — Over a thousand disarmed Congolese soldiers and police officers, along with their families, have safely been transferred from the rebel-controlled city of Goma in eastern Congo to the capital over the last two weeks, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced Thursday. The soldiers and police officers had been taking refuge at the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Congo's base since January, when the decades-long conflict in eastern Congo escalated as the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic city of Goma. The Red Cross said in a statement it helped escort the 1,359 disarmed members of the government forces and their families from Goma to the capital Kinshasa between April 30 and May 15th, traveling nearly 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) and across a front line. The ICRC said it accompanied several convoys on the road, while transport by helicopter and plane was carried out by the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in Congo and the country's armed forces. 'The operation has been a success, it has enabled those transported to Kinshasa to get back in touch with their families and, we hope, will reduce tensions in the city of Goma,' Myriam Favier, head of the ICRC's sub-delegation in Goma, said. The transfer of the government forces was the result of an agreement reached between the Congolese government, the rebels, the U.N. mission and the ICRC, which was called upon as a neutral intermediary, the Red Cross said, adding that it made sure that all the individuals had consented to being transported in the convoys. For security reasons, no media outlets were allowed to film or photograph the operation. The news of the successful transfer comes amid persistent tensions in eastern Congo, where fighting between Congo's army and M23 continues, despite both sides having agreed to work toward a truce last month. Eastern Congo has been in and out of crisis for decades. Dozens of armed groups are vying for territory in the mining region near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world's largest humanitarian crises with more than 7 million people displaced, including 100,000 who fled homes this year. The M23 rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Congo's capital, Kinshasa, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the west. On Thursday, Congolese authorities accused Rwanda's army and M23 of having killed dozens and abducted thousands in eastern Congo. Last week, Congo and Rwanda submitted a draft peace proposal as part of a U.S.-led process, with the Trump administration eyeing access to critical minerals in the resource-rich region. ——- Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal.
Winnipeg Free Press
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Red Cross escorts over 1,000 disarmed Congolese soldiers from rebel-controlled city to capital
GOMA, Congo (AP) — Over a thousand disarmed Congolese soldiers and police officers, along with their families, have safely been transferred from the rebel-controlled city of Goma in eastern Congo to the capital over the last two weeks, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced Thursday. The soldiers and police officers had been taking refuge at the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Congo's base since January, when the decades-long conflict in eastern Congo escalated as the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic city of Goma. The Red Cross said in a statement it helped escort the 1,359 disarmed members of the government forces and their families from Goma to the capital Kinshasa between April 30 and May 15th, traveling nearly 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) and across a front line. The ICRC said it accompanied several convoys on the road, while transport by helicopter and plane was carried out by the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in Congo and the country's armed forces. 'The operation has been a success, it has enabled those transported to Kinshasa to get back in touch with their families and, we hope, will reduce tensions in the city of Goma,' Myriam Favier, head of the ICRC's sub-delegation in Goma, said. The transfer of the government forces was the result of an agreement reached between the Congolese government, the rebels, the U.N. mission and the ICRC, which was called upon as a neutral intermediary, the Red Cross said, adding that it made sure that all the individuals had consented to being transported in the convoys. For security reasons, no media outlets were allowed to film or photograph the operation. The news of the successful transfer comes amid persistent tensions in eastern Congo, where fighting between Congo's army and M23 continues, despite both sides having agreed to work toward a truce last month. Eastern Congo has been in and out of crisis for decades. Dozens of armed groups are vying for territory in the mining region near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world's largest humanitarian crises with more than 7 million people displaced, including 100,000 who fled homes this year. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The M23 rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Congo's capital, Kinshasa, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the west. On Thursday, Congolese authorities accused Rwanda's army and M23 of having killed dozens and abducted thousands in eastern Congo. Last week, Congo and Rwanda submitted a draft peace proposal as part of a U.S.-led process, with the Trump administration eyeing access to critical minerals in the resource-rich region. ——- Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal.
30-04-2025
- Politics
Red Cross escorts hundreds of stranded Congolese soldiers from rebel-controlled city to capital
GOMA, Congo -- Hundreds of stranded Congolese soldiers and police officers, along with their families, were being transferred from the rebel-controlled city of Goma in eastern Congo to the capital, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced Wednesday. The soldiers and police officers have been taking refuge at the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Congo's base since January, when the decades-long conflict in eastern Congo escalated as the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic Goma. The operation is the result of an agreement reached between the Congolese government, the rebels, the U.N. mission and the ICRC, which was called upon as a neutral intermediary, the Red Cross said in a statement. Upon arrival in Kinshasa, the soldiers, police officers and their families will be taken in by Congolese authorities, it added. The transfer from Goma to Kinshasa, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the west, is expected to last several days, Myriam Favier, the ICRC chief in Goma, said during a press briefing Wednesday. The announcement was greeted with profound relief. 'We were disarmed because we had no choice, but we hope to reach Kinshasa,' a Congolese soldier told The Associated Press over the phone, ahead of his transfer. 'As soldiers, we are always ready to defend our homeland. We lost a battle, not the war,' he said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was still in the rebel-controlled area and not allowed to speak to reporters. Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for Congo's armed forces, welcomed the initiative in a statement on Wednesday. 'The Congolese Armed Forces hopes that this operation will be carried out in strict compliance with the commitments made,' he said, thanking the ICRC for its role. For security reasons, no media outlets were allowed to film or photograph the operation. The news of the ICRC's escort comes amid persistent tensions in eastern Congo, where fighting between Congo's army and M23 continues, despite both sides having agreed to work toward a truce earlier this month. On Saturday, residents of Kaziba in the South Kivu province reported clashes between Congolese armed forces, supported by an allied militia, and M23. M23 is one of about 100 armed groups vying for a foothold in mineral-rich eastern Congo near the border with Rwanda, in a conflict that has created one of the world's most significant humanitarian crises. More than 7 million people have been displaced. The rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Kinshasa. In Feburary, the U.N. Human Rights Council launched a commission to investigate atrocities, including allegations of rape and killing akin to 'summary executions' by both sides. Conflict in eastern Congo is estimated to have killed 6 million people since the mid-1990s, in the wake of the Rwanda genocide. Some of the ethnic Hutu extremists responsible for the 1994 killing of an estimated 1 million of Rwanda's minority ethnic Tutsis and Hutu moderates later fled across the border into eastern Congo, fueling the proxy fighting between rival militias aligned to the two governments. ——
The Independent
30-04-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Red Cross escorts hundreds of stranded Congolese soldiers from rebel-controlled city to capital
Hundreds of stranded Congolese soldiers and police officers, along with their families, were being transferred from the rebel-controlled city of Goma in eastern Congo to the capital, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced Wednesday. The soldiers and police officers have been taking refuge at the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Congo's base since January, when the decades-long conflict in eastern Congo escalated as the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic Goma. The operation is the result of an agreement reached between the Congolese government, the rebels, the U.N. mission and the ICRC, which was called upon as a neutral intermediary, the Red Cross said in a statement. Upon arrival in Kinshasa, the soldiers, police officers and their families will be taken in by Congolese authorities, it added. The transfer from Goma to Kinshasa, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the west, is expected to last several days, Myriam Favier, the ICRC chief in Goma, said during a press briefing Wednesday. The announcement was greeted with profound relief. 'We were disarmed because we had no choice, but we hope to reach Kinshasa,' a Congolese soldier told The Associated Press over the phone, ahead of his transfer. 'As soldiers, we are always ready to defend our homeland. We lost a battle, not the war,' he said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was still in the rebel-controlled area and not allowed to speak to reporters. Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for Congo's armed forces, welcomed the initiative in a statement on Wednesday. 'The Congolese Armed Forces hopes that this operation will be carried out in strict compliance with the commitments made,' he said, thanking the ICRC for its role. For security reasons, no media outlets were allowed to film or photograph the operation. The news of the ICRC's escort comes amid persistent tensions in eastern Congo, where fighting between Congo's army and M23 continues, despite both sides having agreed to work toward a truce earlier this month. On Saturday, residents of Kaziba in the South Kivu province reported clashes between Congolese armed forces, supported by an allied militia, and M23. M23 is one of about 100 armed groups vying for a foothold in mineral-rich eastern Congo near the border with Rwanda, in a conflict that has created one of the world's most significant humanitarian crises. More than 7 million people have been displaced. The rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Kinshasa. In Feburary, the U.N. Human Rights Council launched a commission to investigate atrocities, including allegations of rape and killing akin to 'summary executions' by both sides. Conflict in eastern Congo is estimated to have killed 6 million people since the mid-1990s, in the wake of the Rwanda genocide. Some of the ethnic Hutu extremists responsible for the 1994 killing of an estimated 1 million of Rwanda's minority ethnic Tutsis and Hutu moderates later fled across the border into eastern Congo, fueling the proxy fighting between rival militias aligned to the two governments. ——
