Laurent Nkunda

7 Stories

Rwanda Nabs Congo Rebel Leader

Nkunda arrested by country once accused of supporting him

(Newser) - Fearsome rebel leader Laurent Nkunda, the head of a movement that has destabilized the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been arrested over the border in Rwanda. Hundreds of Rwandan troops converged on a mountain village last night inside Congo where the general was stationed, but he crossed the border into...

Anarchy Rules Desperate Congo

In country's east, rebels and army abandon citizens

(Newser) - Bewildered residents in eastern Congo talk of the "front line" separating rebel territory from areas controlled by the army. But no such line exists—only a jumble of unstable, chaotic territories with no checkpoints or fortifications, reports the New York Times. While a ceasefire between the two sides seems...

Thousands Flee as Congo Ceasefire Fails

Heads of state meet as army, rebels kill dozens

(Newser) - The ceasefire in eastern Congo crumbled yesterday as Tutsi rebels and Hutu militias did battle, leaving dozens of bodies lying in the streets of a town near the Rwandan border and forcing 35,000 residents to flee, the Guardian reports. Hutu residents have accused the rebel army of Laurent Nkunda...

UN Boss Jets to Congo Amid New Fighting

Fears of a wider conflict grow as rebel leader threatens to take Goma

(Newser) - UN chief Ban Ki-Moon is traveling to the Democratic Republic of Congo to press for a peace deal just as new fighting breaks out, the Guardian reports. The Congolese government has rejected peace talks with the rebels, who have vowed to attack the provincial capital of Goma and continue a...

Congo's Crisis at Breaking Point

EU, African Union scramble to broker peace deal as Nkunda attacks

(Newser) - European and African officials held crisis talks last night to avert a complete meltdown in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the civil war risks degenerating into genocide. The diplomatic push came as Laurent Nkunda, the Tutsi general, led 10,000 rebels into battle in a province bordering Rwanda, which...

Ceasefire Calms Congo
 Ceasefire Calms Congo 

Ceasefire Calms Congo

10 dead as fleeing refugees run into brutal government soldiers

(Newser) - Fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo has eased after rebels declared a cease-fire, reports the Los Angeles Times. As paramilitary forces moved through the countryside, refugees flooded into the eastern city of Goma—only to face assault, rape and murder at the hands of the Congolese army. UN officials...

UN Pleads for Troops as Congo Battle Rages

Peacekeepers overwhelmed as rebels advance against government troops

(Newser) - The overwhelmed United Nations peacekeeping force in eastern Congo is urgently calling for reinforcements, the AP reports. A surge in fighting between Congolese government troops and forces led by a renegade general has sent tens of thousands fleeing. The UN currently has only 6,000 troops in North Kivu, where...

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