The United Nations Security Council on Friday unanimously adopted a resolution demanding that the M23 armed rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) immediately cease hostilities and withdraw from territories it has seized. The Council also threatened sanctions against those who prolong the conflict, which has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians.
France, which drafted the text, said Resolution 2773 sends a clear message that there is no military solution to the conflict in eastern DR Congo.
"The priority is to reach an effective, unconditional and immediate ceasefire agreement," UN Ambassador Nicolas de Riviere said.
"A restoration of dialogue is urgent, with support from mediation at the regional level. The sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC needs to be respected."
The resolution also calls on the Rwandan Defense Forces (RDF) to cease their support "to the M23 and immediately withdraw from DRC territory without preconditions." Council members accuse the Rwandan Defense Forces of "direct support" of the M23. Rwanda has repeatedly denied allegations that it supports the rebels.
The UN, the US, human rights groups and news organizations have compiled extensive evidence that Rwanda is supporting the M23 rebels - and that thousands of Rwandan soldiers are fighting alongside them on DRC territory.
Recent reports have revealed the continued presence of Rwandan Defense Forces on the ground in eastern DRC throughout the conflict. The M23's advances come as no surprise, as the DRC, the United Nations and many foreign governments say the fighters are heavily armed by Rwanda, a country with a strong military.
Thousands of Rwandan-backed M23 rebels continue to seize territory in the mineral-rich eastern part of the DRC with little resistance from the Congolese national army (FARDC).
Since early January, the M23 has focused on the provinces of North and South Kivu, capturing South Kivu's capital, Bukavu, on February 16, about three weeks after taking North Kivu's capital, Goma, where more than 3,000 people were killed and 2,000 others injured in the fighting.
After seizing the largest and second-largest cities in eastern DRC, the rebels have also taken control of other key towns, including Masisi, Sake and Nyabibwe, and have set up "parallel administrations" in some of the territories they control.
On Friday, the Security Council demanded that the M23 fully reverse the establishment of "illegitimate parallel administrations" in the DRC.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference last week, DRC President Felix Tshisekedi criticized the outside world for not taking action against Rwanda in the face of escalating violence in his country.
The M23 first took control of Goma in 2012. The group was pushed back the following year by the Congolese army, some of its regional allies, and special forces from the UN Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO).
The group is one of more than 130 armed groups operating in eastern DRC, mainly in the North and South Kivu provinces, vying for control of valuable and abundant mineral resources, including gold, diamonds, uranium and copper, as well as coltan and cobalt, key components in batteries used in electric cars, cell phones and other electronics.
In its resolution, the Security Council condemned the systematic illegal exploitation and trafficking of natural resources in eastern DRC and reaffirmed its strong commitment to the country's sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.
“The illegal exploitation of natural resources remains a key driver of instability in the region,” said Sierra Leone's UN Ambassador Michael Imran Kanu, urging greater compliance with relevant international frameworks to prevent the financing of armed groups.
Kanu joined others in stressing that dialogue is the only sustainable path to lasting stability in the DRC.
"Talking to adversaries is hard, perhaps a taboo for some, but we do not make peace with friends but with adversaries," he said.
On Friday, the head of MONUSCO suggested that the rebels appeared to be targeting the capital, Kinshasa.
"Very public declarations and statements by AFC/M23, clearly repeated over time and including last week, show that the intent is to go up to Kinshasa," Bintou Keita, who is also the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative in the DRC, told reporters in a video briefing from Kinshasa.
"It is our understanding, looking at what is going on in North Kivu, but also the onward push towards South Kivu, and we understand they are pushing a bit further to Tanganyika."
Rwanda claims Kinshasa is collaborating with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a Hutu armed group with ties to the perpetrators of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, a charge the DRC denies.
"We believe that any outcome that doesn't take Rwanda's security concerns seriously will not offer a sustainable solution to the conflict," said Rwanda's UN Ambassador Ernest Rwamucyo.
In its resolution, the Council condemned "support provided by DRC military forces to specific armed groups, in particular the FDLR," calling for it to stop. The Council also urged the parties to rapidly implement "the harmonized plan for the neutralization" of the FDLR and the "disengagement of forces from the territory of the DRC."
Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been caught up in the fighting. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said Friday that it needs $40.4 million to assist 275,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) in eastern DRC and to support a potential influx of 258,000 refugees, asylum seekers and returnees to neighboring countries, including Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
UNHCR said there was an urgent need for shelter, food and latrines, as well as the relocation of new arrivals to other sites to alleviate overcrowding. Aid agencies are stepping up assistance, distributing hot meals and water to new arrivals. But they need all kinds of supplies.
The emergency appeal comes as fighting in the Kalehe area has forced more than 50,000 people to flee in the past week, many into neighboring Burundi. Since February, more than 40,000 Congolese - the majority of them women and children - have crossed into Burundi to seek protection.
Meanwhile, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Thursday that it had partially resumed food assistance in parts of Goma, delivering vital nutritional supplies to treat moderate acute malnutrition in children. With key access routes blocked and Goma International Airport also closed, WFP's priority is to fully resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so.
The WFP-run United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), which provides critical access and support to humanitarian agencies throughout the country, urgently requires $33.1 million to sustain operations in the country this year. Without additional contributions, air operations could cease as early as the end of March.
The airport in Goma has been closed for more than two weeks, cutting off a vital supply route for humanitarian aid. UNHAS conducted nearly 7,000 flights in 2024, transporting 44,000 people to 62 destinations, often bypassing damaged or blocked roads.
The crisis in eastern DR Congo is escalating rapidly after M23 fighters seized Bukavu, the second largest city in eastern DRC, just weeks after capturing Goma, the region's largest city.
On Friday, WFP warned that looting had severely disrupted humanitarian operations, leaving more than 450,000 people without shelter, food or water.
“Displaced people have not had assistance for six weeks,” said Shelley Thakral, WFP spokesperson in DRC, in a statement.
“This will impact their nutritional status and health. It is critical to bring food in – people are running out.”
The UN agency plans to reach 7 million of the most vulnerable women, men and children in DRC with life-saving food and nutrition assistance in 2025, and is working with UN agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and government partners to address urgent needs and prepare for a possible large-scale response as soon as conditions allow.
"We need to intervene immediately, we need funding," Thakral said.
Even before the recent escalation of armed conflict, DR Congo faced one of the largest and most under-reported humanitarian crises in the world, characterized by widespread human rights violations and massive forced displacement.
Across the DRC, emergency needs are now growing rapidly. Without a sustainable solution to the conflict in the eastern provinces, the humanitarian crisis is expected to further worsen.
The DRC has a population of about 118 million, with an estimated 21 million people in need of humanitarian aid in 2025, one of the highest numbers in the world. At least 8 million people in the country have been forced to flee their homes. Before the escalation, 4.6 million people were already internally displaced in the two eastern provinces of North and South Kivu.
Some information for this report provided by VOA.